Marrow
by YamiYugiPuzzleshipper
Summary: "I'm restless and I want to bite you. I literally just saw your spine when you slouched and now all I can think about is how much I wish I could crack your bones between my teeth and suck the marrow out."


**WARNING: Blood, Gore, Violence, Major Character Deaths, Cursing**

 **If you know anything about werewolves, you know that they "love" to eat humans. If you can watch a horror movie where they're eating the person alive or leave behind their remains, I think you can handle what's in this story. Especially considering the summary because, wow, if that didn't turn you away, then I think you can handle it.**

 **Regardless, the lycanthropes are modeled after Thiess of Kaltenbrun's idea of werewolves as the Hounds of God (Hounds of Heaven as I call them) and Lupa in Roman mythology as the she-wolf who suckled Romulus and Remus. But most of all, they're like WOLVES, actual WOLVES, in the wild. So, yes, they are more balanced out while their counterparts, the hellhounds, aren't so much. Anyways, wolves gravitate towards healthy food and often wolves in the wild that have access to a full carcass will go straight for the bones first to get the marrow out. In fact, studies have shown that dogs will do the same when given a meal that consists of that, heart, and liver. Predators always go for the marrow first because it is the most nutritious, then for the organs (of course wolves rarely get to eat whole carcasses due to bears and ravens but if they could, they would do the same).**

 **If you can't handle blood, gore, violence, and death, then I suggest you turn away while you still can. There are dark themes and moments throughout this one-shot, though if the summary hasn't turned you away from this story, and if you can handle** **vampires and how they suck blood from your veins or zombies and how they eat your brains, then you can handle my lycanthropes.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Yu-Gi-Oh.**

Marrow

Wide blue-ringed dark violet eyes regarded the lithe shape that was leaned over the display case of various flavored and colored ice cream choices. The frame bent over the glass had his hands against the case, brows furrowed and his jaw clenched in concentration as his lips pursed slightly. Heat made perspiration appear where his hands touched the clear barrier and his head tilted as he worked on the task of making a decision of what to get on his cone. He looked like a hyperactive child faced with the difficulty of a math problem far above his mental capacity, and his companion could not help but smirk at the irony of the image before him.

He had already ordered a Neapolitan combo, though he had put it off until he was sure that the other had gotten his cone as well. He had a feeling that if he had gotten it already, held the cold treat in his fingers and begun to happily eat, that it would have melted long before the other made up his mind. So now he smiled and shook his head in amusement, leaning against the glass and watching him through his long, feathery lashes.

"Okay, I think I'll go with mocha cookie double chunk," he finally stated, clearing his throat awkwardly as his partner rolled his eyes and shook his head in amusement. That was the flavor that the other had been leaning over the entire span of thirty minutes and he had not noticed its name before then?

"Wow, Yami, I applaud you," he teased, clapping lazily and laughing as the other scowled at him playfully and then snarled low in his throat. He snorted in amusement, taking his own cone as the girl passed him his easier choice and went about scooping Yami's.

"And I dub you an asshole, Yugi," the other commented teasingly, taking his own cone and licking happily. He watched the way his tongue caught the light brown ice cream, coloring it a soft tan with small bits of cookie that looked almost like tiny dabs of smeared chocolate across the muscle.

"I'm the asshole? You're the one who made her keep it open all night. It's one in the morning, aibou!" Yugi cried, laughing at the way Yami pursed his lips momentarily and then rolled his eyes with a haughty noise.

"Oh shut up," he stated, leaning over the counter to press a kiss into the girl's forehead as he had upon greeting her. Again that pang of unfamiliar jealousy swept through him at the sight of his lips against her skin and his mouth threatened to tug down into a truly unhappy frown. His shoulder pressed against his as he pulled away again and his hand reached forward to uncurl one of Yugi's from where it was wrapped around the waffle cone. His palms were still that steady, soft heat of a temperature they always were despite the apparent chill in the air and his fingers worked to massage the back of his hand to keep it warm.

The digits folded a moment later, encompassing his, and he started forward without a backwards glance, licking at his ice cream cone and shouldering the door open. Yugi allowed himself to be pulled forward onto the deserted street, smiling faintly as he moved to match his pace, slightly surprised by the way his steps naturally fell in sync with the other's. Yami swung their arms and Yugi snorted in amusement, shaking his head as he continued licking at the vanilla ice cream in the center of the scoop.

He was pretty sure the sight of them eating ice cream was not something that could be deemed normal at one in the morning. But then, Yugi had never been able to refuse Yami before, even though they had only been together for all of a month and a half, so he had not been able to stop himself from laughing and agreeing when the other had climbed in through his window. And he suspected that Yami had expected him to refuse him because he had unconsciously been showing his nerves in the way he kept his eyes lowered most of their conversation until Yugi had grown more fully awake.

Yugi had been dumbstruck for a long time but had eventually cleared his head enough to find his voice and pay him more attention. It had only taken a little enthusiasm in his voice to make the other raise his bright red eyes and peer through his lashes, smiling happily and nearly purring with satisfaction. He had to admit that he had spent most of the time watching his lips rather than he had looking at his eyes, still as amazed as he'd always been by the softness and the ever-present invitation that seemed to make the shape of them.

Yugi was glad to have agreed to take part in his surprise as they came across the playground. Yami released his hand only to throw himself into a swing, eyes bright and seemingly glowing for a split second in the way the streetlight swept through his irises. Yugi claimed the spot next to him after a moment, gripping the chilled, thick links of metal, and smiled at the sensation of being caught by the seat of the swing. It was always a somewhat surprising and happy event when he found himself resting in the softened plastic, as if it had caught him when he was falling endlessly.

"Can I kiss you?" he blurted out, looking at the other boy and nearly laughing when Yami paused mid-lick and stared at him with bug eyes for a split second. He withdrew his tongue after a moment, the pink muscle wetting his lips as he licked his mouth and made a soft smacking noise. Yugi smothered a small, childish giggle when he saw the tiny traces of mocha ice cream on his lips, lightly staining his golden-bronze skin. He leaned forward, head tilted, and Yugi lowered his lids as he matched the action to give him more access to his lips.

Yugi had to admit that the other boy at least had good taste in ice cream considering the delicious flavor that entered his mouth on his tongue. The red-eyed teen was leaned forward further, a hand reaching out to touch his jaw, tipping his head somewhat downwards to draw in more access, and he shivered in delight at the sensation. Yami's tongue was always a touch hotter than his own, with a bit more strength to the muscle as it moved in his mouth. Yugi had never been much of a person to try to claim the other's mouth, instead enjoying wholly the way that Yami mapped his palate out to satisfaction and allowed him to do the same.

He pulled back panting, eyes feathering open as his breath grew in white puffs in front of his face. The disturbance of mist in the air gave a pleasant momentary shield against the bright streetlight that rested only a few paces away, the bulb a lot harsher than usual due to the playground being a shortcut for kids walking home at times. A jungle gym sat only a few feet away to the right, with the climbing equipment of painted metal that led to a slide that curved four times around the supporting beam. The tunnel tube that connected the various levels of the play set was a bright yellow that hurt his eyes with the glare it cast and Yugi nearly squinted at the fierce note of color that burned his vision.

The stray bark, shredded and brightly colored in reds and browns, shifted softly beneath his feet as he tried to find his balance more fully with the sudden creak of the swing. The metal links shook from where they rested inside of the weak-looking foundation, and the seat twisted with his movement and where Yami's hand had gripped it to pull him somewhat closer. The earth was soft despite the chill of autumn air, dark black like fresh soil had been dumped underneath the playground, and Yugi caught his balance quickly.

He was unsure of how he had wound up so unbalanced in the first place, especially when he had merely been looking at the streetlight, but he doubted he needed to find out. It wasn't too terribly important, especially with the way that the other boy was watching him, completely stiff in his swing.

"You okay?" Yami teased, raising a brow and giving him a momentary highlight of color in a touch of concern in those red eyes as the glow of the streetlight passed over his irises. Yugi snickered at himself, nodding and licking his lips as he turned back to his ice cream happily, the waffle cone cold and already growing deliciously soggy where he had passed the frozen desert over the edges multiple times. The little grooves were filled and he loved it when they were like that, as he always had growing up.

"Yeah," he stated simply, smiling widely at the other boy and watching his eyes glitter with laughter. "Just moved a little too suddenly, I guess."

"I'll say," Yami returned, smirking and shaking his head faintly. "You looked like you were going to fall off the swing."

"Oh shut up," Yugi laughed, glancing out over the playground for a moment and taking in the brilliant green grass that surrounded the little area. He kicked his legs lazily once but did not go very high, instead working on his ice cream while glancing sideways to see Yami tearing into his without much mind of the repercussions to his teeth. He never once flinched despite his rabid attack against the frozen desert, and Yugi had to admit he was a little envious as he methodically picked at his own.

Yami swallowed the last mouthful of cookie dough and mocha ice cream, gripping both chains that held his swing so securely, and began to kick his feet until he was sailing almost to the very top of the metal structure. Yugi tipped his head up, amused, and watched as his hair whipped with the speed he went, the momentum of his upwards kicks sending him nearly right over the bar. If he had just put a bit more force into it, Yugi was sure he would go over it and come back without even doing much more than taking a simple breath.

He jumped off suddenly, and Yugi thought for sure that the momentum would send him flying to land face first and without a single pause. He swallowed hard, expecting him to tear his cheeks over with the impact, and a small whimper started to bubble up in his throat. But in the seemingly endless handful of seconds it took for him to land, Yami righted himself.

His legs pulled inwards, his center of balance curved back so that his spine arched slightly. His shoes touched the ground toes-first, his balance found immediately with the gentle impact, and his entire body folded forward for a split second. His fingertips found the earth directly in front of the toes of his sneakers, and Yugi blinked stupidly. Yami pulled himself to his feet, straightening his back completely, and smiled happily as he looked at him.

His hand stretched out, palm open in invitation of his, and Yugi smiled happily as he reached forward, the awe in his senses making his skin tingle. It was as if, for some reason, in that split second between his fingers moving forward to touch his warmed skin, Yami were offering him all the freedom the world could give. The thought drifted in his mind for a shattered moment and then disappeared completely as he smiled warmly.

* * *

The leaves offered a nice shelter from the sun, the soft veins against the bright yellow of the cells of foliage catching his eyes momentarily. The sunlight made them look like odd balls of flame almost akin like a mass of will-o-wisps though they did not dance but with the touch of a gentle wind that tugged at the light twigs supporting them and holding them to the branches. A bird chattered softly somewhere amidst the taller arches of wood and bark, and he could hear a few squirrels running along in the maze of brown and red and yellow, the branches dipping beneath the touch of their weight. The soft rustle of their movements and the leaves brushing together made Yugi tip his head up and he resisted the urge to stop and stare, to pull Yami back from where he was leading him along.

Straw crunched softly beneath their feet and touches of the yellowed and browned red-flecked leaves littered the earth beneath their feet. The ground was somewhat soggy, molded to their prints with each step, and Yugi could hear the small spikes of fallen pine squelching with the attempt to release some of the water. Most of the droplets collected in the leaves had fallen from the animals moving about them, the branches dipping to scatter them away, or had dried beneath the rays of the sun. The air had grown almost unbelievably hot, pressing against his skin and threatening to bring forth a sweat, and the soft pressure was enough to make him feel the need to lock himself in the house with the fans going and a nice video game to keep his attention.

A lone drop splashed onto his head and he relished in the way that it felt against his scalp. It spread coolly against his skin, making him moan in a soft touch of ecstasy that only a rainy forest could offer, his eyes drawing into a half-lidded status and his vision obscured delightfully by his lashes. He tipped his head back, sighing softly, satisfaction coating every one of his senses, and he licked his lips as he stared at the other boy in front of him, smiling warmly.

"Aibou, where are we going?" he drawled, laughing when Yami did not even pause but turned his head to grin at him brightly over his shoulder. A branch cracked under his foot with the boom of a shotgun, the thick air working to amplify it somehow, and a startled noise left a few of the birds. Several of them took flight and Yami's head snapped up to watch them, keen as his gaze traced the arches of their wings and the paths they took effortlessly through the air.

"The trail up here is really nice," Yami mumbled, briefly distracted by the birds before turning back to him. "You can find a lot of animals up here—especially the serows. You can find a bunch of serows that just pass through and sometimes the wild boar come up here for a little while. But you know what's really cool about the serows? They tend to run away from you but the entire time they do, they look back over their shoulders to see if you're following."

"And something tells me that they wouldn't survive a horror film," Yugi laughed, eyes bright with warmth at the way Yami's entire face lit up at the topic of conversation. It was mindless chatter for the most part, but it made the other seem so endlessly happy and the blue-violet-eyed boy had to admit he loved that fact. Yugi had to admit that he thought that nature had to be something that kept the other grounded and happy. He seemed beyond at ease when it was so much as brought up and the freedom that seemed to exist within the other was as simple as the wind when it stroked at his skin.

"Definitely not," he agreed, spinning around again and breathing in deeply before sighing loudly and glancing around slowly. Yugi squeezed his fingers and continued along in his steps, a little surprised by how easily he took in each print that the other made. It was hard to see them most of the time, because Yami seemed to barely put much weight into his step and at times Yugi thought for sure that his steps faded away into nothingness. The soggy earth seemed more than happy to absorb his impact in the straw, unlike with his own, which caused the water to seep out and a print to form there in the dark brown mass of shed plant life.

"There's one," Yami announced softly, voice so low that if the air were not so still and more or less silent, Yugi would have lost it amidst the animals in the undergrowth. His head turned towards where Yami was already staring, eyes darkened slightly and his head tilted in concentration.

The animal that greeted him in a small thicket of fern leaves in a bit of space between several trees was small, low to the ground with a compact strength that made his eyes widen. Its face was a beautiful smoky silver-white, with gray along the snout that stretched to take place beneath its eyes and upwards along its skull in something of a remnant of a four-leaf clover. Its fur was bushy, fluffed out in the growing cold, with a coat almost like a Siberian husky. Each hair was stretched to its fullest, puffed outwards, and its nose was a large black muscle that looked almost akin a dog's. A single pair of horns rested on its forehead, marked by a large patch of black fluff to match its large triangular ears. A tan undercoat blended into that of silver strands and mingled beautifully and grew to take on dark smoky gray ends. The chest was a color like its face, the inside of its legs taking on the same beautiful shade. Large, beady black eyes stared at them almost fearfully, shaped almost like elegantly curved almonds, with the size almost the very same as the little nut. Black legs looked hoofed or cloven but Yugi could not tell with the gentle slope that rested between them, the straw displaced from where it had moved moments before.

Yugi blinked wide eyes at the sight, tilting his head and watching it curiously, and wondered what it looked like without the growing winter climate. As unnaturally warm and humid as it was, it did not seem to affect the animal much, despite the immense heat that must have been packed into its coat. But Yugi did take notice that it was not looking at him with wide eyes, but rather at Yami, and its gaze opened wide as it turned tail and fled with a single whistling snort of warning. His boyfriend stiffened beside him, eyes narrowing and tracking each of its movements, and Yugi heard his breath come out in an ancient, ragged exhale that was almost too low for him to catch.

* * *

The fried chicken left a delicious scent that swept through them both as Yugi put the bag down in the center of the kitchen table and looked at him in invitation. The spices used in the batter were unusually strong, the breading thick where it coated the fleshy meat, and it was cooked to perfection with a heat that made all of its various components strong in the air around them. Yami licked his lips and Yugi smiled as he began to pull the bag open, peeling open the soft brown corners of the cardboard with the small window to look through, covered in condensation.

Yugi was starving as he picked out some plates and grabbed his own drumstick, dropping it onto his dish and taking a seat, giving Yami a somewhat confused look when he did not move at first. "What? Don't you like fried chicken?" he asked curiously, frowning slightly in confusion and blinking at him.

Yami gave him a small smile. "Oh yes, I love fried chicken," he stated, grabbing the other dish and picking out a thigh before taking a seat next to him immediately. Yugi waited for him to take a bite but found him instead busying himself with the cup of water he had formerly gotten when he had gone to get their meal from the restaurant down the street. He was still a little surprised that Yami had done nothing more than get that bit of water, not even bothering with the television or attempting to sneak into his room and search for something to find out more about him.

No, when he had come back, the other had merely been propped up against the counter with a cup of cold water in his hand. And it was clear that he had not done anything else because he did not look rushed in any way and seemed absolutely at ease when he had come back. It would have been clear on his face if he had gone through his things or done something other than what Yugi had seen because he knew how to read his face thoroughly.

He took the first bite, savoring the juicy meat as it warmed his tongue, and purred softly in satisfaction at the burst of flavor in his mouth. Opening an eye to peek over at the other, he nearly laughed when he found that Yami seemed to have reclaimed his appetite and was digging in to his own piece of chicken. His eyes were glazed over slightly with satisfaction and hunger, his lips tugged into a slight smile, and his mouth seemed to water more with the food in his jaws.

"Good, huh?"

"Perfect," Yami purred in response, licking his lips and smiling warmly at the other, biting into his meal again. Yugi plucked out the other drumstick and hungrily gulped down his food, happily digging in and picking out his next while Yami did the same. He had to admit that his appetite had skyrocketed now that there was food in front of him and he had failed to eat anything but a slice of toast for breakfast before rushing off to meet Yami for a movie date.

Yugi was full after his fourth piece of chicken, settling comfortably in his seat, and Yami finished his half of the eight-piece as well, sipping at his water before picking up a bone and bringing it to his teeth. Yugi watched in absolute wonder and confused curiosity as the other boy cracked the bone between his molars. His mouth worked on the piece of skeleton, his eyes narrowed in concentration but his stomach giving a slight, terribly soft growl that told Yugi immediately how hungry the other remained. He imagined that, in that moment, his digging into that bone was a lot like the need to sate an impossible itch that required you to gnaw on your own finger to appease it for a small time.

The bone cracked almost effortlessly, with a soft undertone like a sizzling piece of meat, and the sound of it splintering made Yugi blink wide eyes as he looked him over. "Is…is that actually good?" he mumbled softly, making the other blink and glance at him with a small smile of amusement.

"It can be, yes, but it's brain food too, so it's pretty good either way." He paused and watched him for a moment, swallowing and then pulling the bone out of his mouth. "Do you want me to stop?"

"No, go ahead. I just didn't know that anyone actually ate it. I mean, I remember Jonouchi did it one time when we all split a bucket of chicken and he decided he didn't eat enough. So he actually took every bone and ate the marrow out of it. I just thought he was weird but you're doing it too now…" He shook his head and offered him a wide smile.

"I can stop if it makes you uncomfortable—"

"No, no, go ahead. I don't mind it." He paused for a moment and then looked at the bones on his plate before pursing his lips. "Do you want mine too, or…?"

There was a single momentary pause, so fast that it almost didn't exist. "No, that's okay. I'm okay. Thank you, aibou."

Yugi raised a brow but then shrugged as Yami cracked another piece of bone that broke straight in half in his mouth. The other teen startled slightly at the splintering noise, the way that it seemed to burn in his ears for a split second before dying away again completely.

* * *

With an almost metallic snap, his jawbone popped and Yugi shifted his lower jaw back and forth as Yami looked up in surprise at the noise. The other boy gave him a sheepish smile, showing off both rows of teeth as his fingers worked to massage his jaw.

"That was really weird," Yugi commented, blushing a little harder and smiling at him playfully as he picked out a handful of Crackerjack to throw into his mouth and crossed his legs, turning back to the TV to watch the movie they had picked out. He could still feel Yami's eyes on his jaw for a long minute but he turned away again almost immediately when Yugi glanced at him sideways. "Oh well."

It looked almost, in the way that Yami stared at the TV fixedly, as if the red-eyed teen had momentarily been thinking about the way the bones had popped in his teeth two days back. He had looked startled by the noise but there was a light in his eyes—even as he looked at the scene playing—that said he had either been aroused by it or the noise had struck a flame inside of him somewhere.

Yami tilted his head away, watching the screen, but Yugi wasn't oblivious to the way that, somewhere, from some place in the darkest depths, came a low, ancient, panting breath that the other released in near silence.

Yugi was beginning to realize that his growing affection towards the other was not the only thing that seemed to be changing between them.

* * *

It was the eyes that hinted to him exactly what and who he was staring at. He had not meant to do much more than see if he could snap a picture of a serow for a class project. But what he had stumbled upon had made his head swim and his eyes nearly bug out of his head in horror and confusion.

The serow had come through the trees, running like a jackrabbit, but it kept looking over its shoulder. At first he could not see the animal as it was using a lower ridge in the snow beneath his line of vision to chase the goat-antelope up the hill and slow it down viciously. It skittered and nearly lost it balance upon a piece of sliding rock, the single moment of disorientation enough to make it fall victim to its hungry predator. The animal shot forward from the ridge beneath and Yugi froze in place.

A mass of sleek black and silver with touches of bright gold made its way into his vision, leaping nimbly up the slope with nails that dug into the earth. Massive jaws opened, stretching in a way that seemed as if to engulf the other animal's entire head. The sunlight hit its pelt in a glimmering glow that made his eyes momentarily hurt before focus returned to his vision. The serow let out an unholy scream and Yugi flinched as it was dragged onto the earth, its predator pressing a large paw into its shoulders to pin it as it struggled.

The blow would have killed it regardless, as Yugi knew the force of that creature's jaw must have crushed its skull upon impact. The animal kicked at the other, and Yugi realized slowly that it was a canine. The fur was barely ruffled and perfectly smooth, covering a lean body that was stretched out to encompass all space the serow wished to use to flee its fate. Its shadow seemed to encompass the other animal, but it was not so terribly large as one might exaggerate. He thought it had to be half of his own height, with long, slender limbs that were supported by immense paws. Nails were thick and long like the teeth that he had seen in the sunlight and its toes were spread with a small bit of webbing between them.

Yugi blinked and shook his head faintly. The canine was nothing he had ever seen outside of books and it was one of his favorite predators, the only reason that he recognized it. Another person would have run screaming that there was a feral wild dog loose in the mountains, especially considering it was meant to be extinct in Japan altogether. He closed his eyes tightly and then slowly opened them again, sure it was an illusion or his mind being wistful.

But the sight did not change in front of him. The large canine stood in front of him, lithe and lean with powerful muscles that made his eyes nearly bug out of his head. "Son of a bitch," he muttered under his breath.

The animal's head snapped up, releasing its prey altogether as its ears flickered and its eyes found their attention immediately upon him. Yugi fought the urge to smack his own face with his palm, swallowing hard. Wolves were speculated to be nearsighted but this one saw him completely despite the distance between them. For a moment, with the way its head was tipped a bit downwards, he could not see the color of its eyes. He assumed them to be brown or gray or bright gold. But he had to admit that any of those colors set against its face would have seemed strange by all means.

It had a pelt more like that of a red fox in its silver phase. The nose was given a wide ring of bright silver that spread upwards in a mass of dark black that surged to encompass its eyes, coloring its brows and stops. A line of black ran from the corners of its almond-shaped eyes like drawn kohl, stretching into silver that spread along its tufted cheeks. A darker gray made up the slope of its skull, spreading to its ears where bright red made up the edges of each small softly-rounded piece of cartilage. The color disappeared into a solid black along the tips, but the long, fluffy-looking furs within both was given a soft golden twinge with silver at the base. The dorsal cape of fur along the base of its spine beneath its shoulders stretched in bright silver and gold amidst long black guard hairs. The curve of its broad, powerful shoulder blade was pronounced in the golden shade that shared a glow of cinnamon reddish-brown in the direct sunlight. A long line of black stretched down the front length of its forelegs to the base of the joint of its massive paws. A chest of white mingled with tufts of random silver and black and tawny faded in a sharp v-shape like the curve of hipbones. White like the base of its muzzle stretched across its underbelly but seemed to disappear completely into light tan and a deep black along both hind legs. Silver hairs spread across its hind legs where the black was not solid, giving it more coloring, and gold began to make a more noticeable appearance along the base of its tail. The long strands of guard hairs fell in a beautiful feathery design of gold with a stripe of black and layered with silver beneath, disappearing into a tip of darkness that was signature for a wolf.

At first Yugi was worried that it would turn its hunger on him. After all, it would not take much for a wolf to tear him to shreds. The only weapon he held was a smart phone and he doubted it would save him. With teeth built to crush bone and tear through skin and two-inch long canines to puncture and shred, he was defenseless. The animal was larger than what he had seen in most movies or documentaries, with obvious weight and health on its side as well. And he knew of wolves launching themselves at the speed of fifty-six miles per hour when they were truly fearful and felt threatened. He knew of them running for hours at thirty-six miles and reaching heights of sixty at the most when they ran in a full out sprint. He barely hit ten when he was truly scared out of his mind and running away from something that terrified him. But logic said that the wolf did not hunt humans, even when they turned against them as protectors in Japan.

And wolves did not kill humans unless to protect a member of the pack or when they were starving to death. Rabies made them fearless and freed them of inhibitions that they would have otherwise had. So they would kill then if they crossed paths with a human. But they would never hunt them unless the circumstances demanded it.

So he stood still, watching it, and froze in horror as its head rose to look upon him more fully, giving him sight of its eyes.

Bright, blood red eyes burned into his, and the recognition that was shared between the two of them made his stomach twist with shock.

Yami.

* * *

He was relieved to have gotten a full week of absence from the other boy, giving him room to think about what he had seen. He figured he had gotten enough time to think about it when he texted him to meet him at the café, but the moment the other stepped into the room he knew that he had jumped the gun. The other boy was completely silent when he walked inside, glancing around with an expression that looked as if he had been struck a few times by an abusive master and was afraid to even glance in his general direction.

He felt even more unbelievably stupid when he realized the outfit he was wearing. The sun had been unusually warm all day, despite the coming winter, and so he had opted for a simple outfit. It consisted of the usual clothes, a black tank top with an armband on his left bicep and a leather bracelet on his right wrist, his hips given the comfortable fit of black skinny jeans with several loose belts.

Yami took one look at him, froze for a split second as if he thought it better to flee, and then reluctantly came to take a seat in the booth with him. It was an awkward fit, with the booth being in a corner with two sets of leather seats and nothing to mark a barrier between them. Yugi wasn't sure he actually wanted the barrier but his mind was racing tenfold now at the sight of him and he knew that he was not completely sure of his own decision anymore. Perhaps he should have waited a little longer.

For a moment they were silent and then the barista came forward to check on them, smiling at Yugi and reminding him that while Yami had been—was _still_?—his boyfriend, he did have others to fall back on if he couldn't figure out a way to work this out. He ordered a hot chocolate and Yami declined her multiple offers for the "most delicious cappuccino in existence".

Yugi settled back against the seats more comfortably and stared at him for a long moment, relieved when Yami did not look back at him. The other boy was staring with a fixed expression at some pattern on the plastic faux oak table in front of them. He had the impulse to wave his hand in front of his face like he would have Jonouchi or Honda, but he was well aware that the other was excruciatingly mindful of him.

"Okay, I know I called you here," he murmured, watching Yami tilt his head towards him but not raise his eyes, "but I'm starting to think that was really premature. I'm having a…human moment or something. Give me a minute."

Yami merely nodded, though his jaw twitched at the human comment, his head shaking slightly as he turned away again. A deep-rooted hunger began to burn in his stomach, twisting his insides viciously, and his eyes narrowed as his mind flashed with images that shouldn't have been there. Something of Yugi dancing in a wolf pelt that weighed heavily upon his shoulders and shimmered as if alive beneath the sunlight, every hair glittering and catching the eyes of everyone around them.

Yami barely fought away the urge to turn on him, to clench his jaw and glare at him furiously. He was not human but that was not something that Yugi or anyone _else_ had the right to say with such ignorance towards the topic in the first place. Stupid humans and how they always assumed to know everything. He shook his head slightly, waiting for the judgment to be passed and for Yugi to make him regret ever attempting to reach out in the first place.

Yugi was silent for a moment, pursing his lips before smiling brightly at the barista who placed his cup in front of him and once more tried to convince Yami to order something. Frustrated and voice coming out in a low growl, he finally hissed out an order of a cappuccino but Yugi had never once seen Yami drink a coffee before. And he had a feeling that it had something to do with his…species in that regard.

"Yami, I…" He pursed his lips for a moment and then swallowed roughly. "I'm honestly going to sound like an idiot when I say this, because it's…really stupid in retrospect…h-how fast this came around. But I…I love you…"

The boy next to him stopped short, staring blankly at the other for a long minute and a half. "I agree. That…is pretty fast." He stayed quiet for a moment and then shook his head slightly, reaching up to grab at a bang. "It's…shared but it's fast."

Yugi tilted his head, staring at him curiously and not bothering to acknowledge that Yami shared the feelings. Instead he moved to grab the straw from where it rested on the plate right beside the cup, sharing the heat of it and burning his fingers when he started to tear the plastic wrapper away. "Do you actually feel other people's emotions like dogs do or…is that some kind of scientific misnomer or something?" he asked curiously, fingers working away the single strip of plastic surrounding the hollow tube and making one of his nails chip it.

Yami bristled slightly at the implication but shook his head slightly as he narrowed his eyes into slits. "Yes, actually, most predatory animals can. Actually, almost every animal can," he finally mumbled, huffing softly. "Humans are the only mammals that don't react in such a way. It's words that make humans react, not one's mood and emotions."

He blinked and shook his head slightly, lowering his eyes to take in the steam rising from his drink. He hesitated to drop his straw into the beverage but could find nothing else to do and so allowed it to fall in, his eyes narrowed and drawn in on Yami's. "I'm sorry, Yami, I'm trying…I just…it's still pretty strange. I mean…w-what do I call you, aibou? Are you a werewolf or a skinwalker? A lycanthrope? A shape-shifter? Are there any actual _differences_ between those?"

Yami pursed his lips, starting to speak, and then turned to face the waitress, smiling as she placed his coffee down and told him to enjoy, winking as she again said that the cappuccino would be the best he had ever had. As soon as the blue-haired girl walked away again, his head turned back to him and he huffed out a long breath that bordered the ancient, panting exhale that he had let out before.

"Werewolves is the general name for a species of people that can change into only wolves," the red-eyed teen stated slowly, voice low and smooth to keep others out of their conversation but to allow Yugi to hear clearly. "There are two subspecies of werewolves—lycanthropes and hellhounds. Lycanthropes are…more your traditional werewolf, but hellhounds…have the ability to become corporeal or disappear at will."

Yugi blinked slowly. "I've heard of hellhounds before but I don't think that you're one of them, considering your…fur color."

He shook his head. "I am a lycanthrope. I've only got a physical form but I'm a lot stronger than a hellhound in either…skin…" He shook his head and rubbed at his temple for a moment, thinking hard. "Skinwalkers are humans that kill a family member in order to achieve shifting powers and are immortal while in animal forms but need that animal's skin—hence the name. The indigenous people were the first to ever achieve the power, and that is why it is most common among Native Americans and old tribal legends rather than modern people. Shape-shifters are people who can change into an animal that fits their personality, are not immortal but age extremely slowly, and are not as strong as lycanthropes or hellhounds. They do not require a skin or anything else to change, and the ability is learned quickly as opposed to werewolves—it is genetic and cannot be passed through anything other than bloodlines."

"Oh. Okay…"

"Look, Yugi, here's the thing. Even if you stay with me after having learned this, it doesn't matter." He gave him a startled look, eyes widening drastically at the thought of Yami rejecting him so terribly easily. His skin crawled and his jaw worked in nervous frustration and preparation at the thought. "It doesn't matter whether I am in my bed, at this café, in your house, playing video games or watching TV—I am still going to be what I am. I'm a lycanthrope, a werewolf. I change into a wolf when my emotions are too strong or I've had no time to work with everything that I need. This is what I am."

Yugi nodded after a moment, staring at him and waiting for him to continue silently. But when the other stayed completely silent, he found himself licking his lips and chewing his cheek. "I understand that. I can…accept that—give me time to figure out what it is that I should and shouldn't do first before you pass judgments, all right, Yami? I've had a week and I'm still struggling to really wrap my head around it all."

Yami nodded without hesitation, comfortable in the fact that Yugi would think before he made any choice regarding them, something that he knew was a rarity in itself. No other human that he knew of would have been able to do more than either become obsessed with the thought of being given a second form and the freedom of the wolf or completely shunning him by now. He had heard of it within the pack a few times, that someone would find out about their "affliction"—as the more melodramatic put it—and either shun them or use them as a stepping stone to semi-immortality.

The fact that Yugi was sitting here, thinking rather than trying to leap forward and make a decision immediately, said something. The fact that he was even speaking to him now said so much that Yami had the impulse to lean over and kiss him. But instead he found himself looking at the other, nodding again and hoping that he would not take his silence as a bad sign.

"So, then…tell me the things you think I need to know, Yami. Anything at all—because I don't think I have any questions to ask…"

The other blinked and then nodded once as Yugi stirred at his beverage and then took a sip, wincing at the heat as it exploded against his tongue. "All right, well…chocolate won't kill me. I don't eat people. My energy levels are extremely high. I have wolf instincts even in this form. Werewolves as a whole are more animalistic than they are human as they were born through the wolves and not the humans. You cannot make a deal with the devil to become a werewolf or a hellhound but you can make a deal with wish hound hellhounds and they will give you anything you want but your soul is theirs when you die. Silver gives us hives because of allergic reactions. We hate things that smell too strongly. I can hear every heartbeat in this room and if I stretch my focus, I can hear every one of them within this damn city. I have to hunt a lot because the werewolf's core emotions are centered around freedom, power, curiosity, lust, the instinct to survive, and the need to do as a natural wolf would."

Yugi stared at him for a long minute, searching his face and nodding again slowly. "Okay…" he coaxed, nodding once more and smiling encouragingly.

"We feel emotions at about ten times the rate that people do. We don't sleep very much. We have to retain our health or we can suffer horribly in repercussion. We feel all the emotions that humans do but we're more likely to lose ourselves to the Change when we experience too much." He paused and then looked at the drinks in front of him, sniffing and wrinkling his nose with a sharp twinge of disgust. "I run with a pack in which my parents are the alphas. Humans have a wrong assumption about what alphas are. We're far more loyal than any human could hope to be. We tend to eat a lot to keep the Change healthy and fluid and allow us not to kill ourselves during it. And I…I have not changed in a while—that day in the woods was the first time I had since we began dating—so it's making me crazy. I…I'm restless and I want to bite you. I literally just saw your spine when you slouched and now all I can think about is how much I wish I could crack your bones between my teeth and suck the marrow out."

Yugi's eyebrows shot up and his eyes nearly popped out of his head as he gave him a horrified look. Yami held his gaze for a moment, trying to get the point across fully, and then turned away to stare at his drink once more.

"I often get extremely aroused when you speak or move a certain way because I truly need to learn to curve my energy better and it comes out in different ways depending on how long it has been since my last Change." He fell silent for a moment and then narrowed his eyes into slits. "Marrow is extremely important to predators because that is what they naturally go for—it's the healthiest part of the animal and it has amazing benefits so predators normally go for it first. S-so it's natural for me when I—I'm sorry."

Yugi shook his head slightly. "It's natural, Yami, so don't apologize for it." He let out a small sigh and took another sip of hot chocolate, the heat bursting across his tongue and singeing his tastebuds. He shook his head at himself and then shifted in his seat awkwardly, looking at him slowly. "So why didn't you change before that time? You had some time to do that. It's not like your insomnia would have just gone away for you out of nowhere or something…"

"No, it didn't. I just…I was so excited with the thought of…being with you that I didn't truly think about that—at all. It didn't really matter to me all that much in comparison."

"So…you're like an excited puppy."

Yami shot him a scowl and Yugi smirked widely in amusement, snickering as he sipped and then waggled his brows at him. "That pun was terrible."

"It was great and you know it." He waggled his brows again, a bit more comfortable with the information that was within his mind now, the way that his thoughts circulated over them more fully. It was not so terrible in all honesty. He could understand it, even if it seemed strange. It was like someone going stir-crazy from within a house after being within its familiar walls too long. The wolf—or his more dominant side, he supposed, since he had said the human was the shell and the wolf was him in all actuality—would try to find its way out of its cage.

He smiled at the thought. Wolves were the one true animal that humans had never been able to tame completely. They were the only animals that were too wild and powerful for humans to be able to crush their spirits. It was why they called them demon dogs and painted them to be such horrible creatures. Because the humans didn't know what to do with them and so they were afraid of them. Wolves, in all actuality, were too much like humans, and so that made them threats and something to be demonized.

If there was ever a creature that he could compare the other boy to then it would be the wolf. There would never be another animal that could truly encompass Yami's personality, his will, his entire nature.

And it made even more sense now knowing about his lycanthropy. It explained how he had landed on his toes like that when he had jumped off the swing. It explained his fascination with the bone marrow. It gave him knowledge of why he had been so distracted by those birds when they took flight or why he had stiffened when the serow had run off. It explained the goat-antelope's reaction, the way its eyes had grown so wide and terrified. It gave him knowledge as to how Yami could be so powerful despite his smaller, more compact frame and the way he did nothing to work out or build his muscle. It also gave him so much of a revelation when it came to how picky he was with who he associated, why he kept walls around him and had only let him through along with one other person.

He smiled at the thought though he was not so disillusioned as to think that warm feelings would make up for the differences between them. He knew that it would take time to figure out how to work with it all and see if it was even feasible to do all the things with Yami that he wanted to.

He leaned forward to draw a sip from his cup and his shoulders rose in a stiff rebuttal at the burn on his tongue. Red eyes were locked on his collarbone for a moment, on the way his shoulders rose and fell as he forced himself to relax again. He took in every movement that came with his soft breaths and the slightly quickened beat of his heart due to the pain on his tongue. And Yugi looked at him slowly as he realized this, blinking and tilting his head as he regarded him curiously.

Yami cringed away from him, eyes falling onto the drink that was posed before him. His red gaze burned as it studied the cooling liquid, expression sullen as he shook his head a small bit. "I-it's natural instinct," he mumbled, shaking his head slightly. "I'm a predator and I have two forms that are equally powerful when I get an adrenaline rush. And that's what I get when I'm around you…b-because I crave you…more than I have anything else—ever."

"Crave me? In what ways, Yami?"

He opened and closed his mouth once before licking his lips. "A lot of ways," he mumbled, biting his cheek and drawing it between his teeth. "Emotionally, sexually, physically, spiritually, mentally…"

Yugi blinked and then smiled at him, shaking his head. "You can have me in three of those ways. But I don't think the other two are actually possible, aibou," he commented playfully, raising a brow.

Yami opened his mouth to reply and then stopped short, clearing his throat. "Actually, they are, but I…wanted to talk to you about that before we went…separate ways today…"

"Okay, and what is it? Go ahead and just talk, aibou. We can figure out the rest later, okay?"

Yami blinked slowly and narrowed his eyes into thin strips of dark red. "But I'm not sure that I should say it anymore. I am not sure that you would wish to hear…what I had to say…"

"Yami, if I did not want to hear it then I would not be here, remember? So, speak while you still have the chance, okay? I can hear anything you have to say. Just…don't expect everything to be immediate. I can bounce back from a lot but I do need a bit of time for this, okay?"

He opened his mouth to respond but his jaw remained simply open for a moment before he closed his eyes and nodded slowly. He cleared his throat and shook his head slightly, staring at the cup again. "I wanted to tell you that if you…if I wanted to…I wanted to ask you to think about if you would ever want me to…to…bite you, Yugi…"

Yugi froze in place for a moment, blinking, and then squeezed his eyes shut and reached up to rub at his lids briefly, shaking his head momentarily. "Oh…" he mumbled, shaking his head slightly once more and licking his lips awkwardly.

"See? You didn't want to—"

"No, I asked you to say what you had to say," Yugi interrupted sharply, cutting him off immediately and shaking his head as they stared at one another. "Yami, I said that I wanted to hear all of what you wanted to say. But I wasn't expecting…"

"I…I only meant to say that because…well, I am the only werewolf in a pack that's…with a human. It's…extremely dangerous for us—e-especially in an area like Japan. With the absence of wolves and all of that, it makes it a lot harder and…Yugi, I'm sorry. I feel like I'm accusing you but I don't mean to and…just…never mind."

"Is it dangerous because of the fact that they might say something or is it because of something else?"

"Well, that's one reason, yes, but there's also the fact that…rejection and breakups can truly hurt us. Wolves…tend to mate for life—or at least werewolves do. Wolves don't as much anymore…due to humans hunting them so constantly and the wilderness being so harsh and difficult to survive. So they generally have to take a pair bond that can be replaced soon after…while leading the pack…to ensure they don't…dissolve into chaos…" Yami trailed off completely, swallowing hard and shaking his head. "Humans are always changing partners and hurting each other. So it tends to hurt werewolves when that happens when they are in relationships with humans."

"Oh…then love is a one-time thing with werewolves, huh?"

"Well, yes. We put our hearts and all into it and we do nothing on small scales. That's why hellhounds are so chaotic—mentally and physically—and why we mate for life. We do things on a grand scale or we do not put effort into it at all. That's…how we do things, Yugi. It's dangerous…being with humans."

He nodded, searching his eyes, and turned away to peer at the menu over the barista's head. He knew that none of the choices on the menu were actually any good. They were literally just thrown up there to look pretty, with no actual purpose. Yugi nearly snickered at the idea, shaking his head slightly, but didn't want to make Yami feel as if he were mocking him in any way.

Yugi leaned forward again, towards the cup resting in front of him, and his eyes flickered towards him in acknowledgment to the way that the other's gaze fell upon his back. He could only imagine the way that his spine arched forward so far that he could see the vertebrae at the back of his neck sneaking out.

He settled back as he caught the cup in his fingers and pulled it to him, resting against the booth once more. Yami turned away again, blinking stupidly at his cup and shaking his head slightly at the way that his stomach twisted and burned with desire. His imagination leaped forward with the thought of pressing his fingers into the bumps of Yugi's spinal column until they snapped under his fingers like typewriter keys.

The other boy turned to face him, eyes flickering over his face, the fretful lines of distress that coated his features, and shook his head faintly before sighing and leaning forward again. His shoulders rose and fell with the motion and Yami tried in vain to ignore the soft grind of them shifting beneath his flesh.

* * *

Yugi was honestly expecting him not to give a single damn when he texted him—not after how the meeting at the café had seemed to go. He thought it had gone well but at the same time he was still a little scared and horribly startled whenever they spoke at times. Yami had started to become antsy whenever he had moved a certain way and so their avoidance of the other for the rest of the weekend and part of the school day had not been unexpected. But it had been rough and he had to admit that he was somewhat horrified by his own feelings towards the other and how easily they had grown while they had been together for such a short amount of time. It was even more terrifying to realize just how constant they remained despite his knowledge of the other being a lycanthrope. But, regardless of that, he still wanted him around and it was impossible to ignore the pull that came upon even thinking of him in a fleeting train of thought.

So when Yami actually answered his invitation to go for a walk around Domino for a little while, Yugi had honestly been surprised and elated but also suffered through a bout of dread settling into his stomach in an unmovable lump. Yami had met him at the game shop as he had asked, but he had put a respectable amount of distance between them, constantly keeping a few inches of space when they walked. Yugi had tried on several occasions to brush their shoulders and the other had nimbly stepped out of the way by instinct, not even taking a moment to stop and consider it.

So he was now suffering through an awkward walk with the other, occasionally swallowing hard and studying the lycanthrope closely. He couldn't touch him because he moved away immediately, but he still tried.

"Touch me!" he finally spat. Yami's head snapped around and his mouth opened and closed like a gaping fish. His teeth glinted slightly, strangely noticeable now with the realization that he was a werewolf, and Yugi caught himself before he could stare openly. But his cheeks caught with embarrassment regardless. He wanted to shake his head at himself, blushing furiously now. He had not chosen his words well by any means and it honestly sounded pathetically sexual.

"Um…?" the other muttered thoughtlessly, blinking.

Yugi rolled his eyes. "I mean holding hands or something. I tried to before but you just…" He made a choking motion with his hands and Yami eyed him uncomfortably for a moment.

"I'm not sure I should hold hands with you," Yami mumbled, eyeing his fingers again. "You obviously want to choke me. I don't think that I want you crushing my hand…"

"Oh please! I bet you heal too fast for that anyways…" He raised a brow. "Besides, I doubt I could crush your hand like that, regardless…"

The red-eyed teen tilted his head slightly, eyeing him for a moment, and then shrugged. "That's…probably true, honestly. We barely ever break a bone and it's nearly impossible to do it regardless. Our bones are a lot harder." He hesitated, opening and closing his mouth as if to continue, and then reached over to lightly brush their hands together. His pinky finger hooked around his and Yugi beamed happily at the light contact, though he was eager to see if he could get him to twine their fingers together completely.

"Good. Thank you."

Cheeks slightly flushed, the other nodded and turned away again.

A couple of kids were playing together while their mother stood in line for a promotional watch giveaway. A small dog was resting in the pathetic shade offered by a streetlight. A couple of girls from their school were chattering about a new show they were watching. A group of people sat around a circular table at the café. Conversation drifted on an easy breeze. There was a soft hum of the rare car when they passed by. A cat strolled around a corner and fluffed its fur, tail lashing briefly, as it caught Yami's scent. Birds chattered softly and a squirrel made a mad dash across the café's roof.

Yugi thought of the scenery as both comfortable and terribly boring. A small squeal from the girl with pigtails was easily silenced by her doll being given back. His own loneliness was given a somewhat brisk abandonment by Yami's presence, the curve of his pinky hooked with his.

It seemed like one of those every day occurrences. The sights before him seemed so terribly mundane and boring. Everything was as normal as it would have been without his newly obtained knowledge. No one stopped and looked at them as if they were strange because no one cared. Yami didn't draw attention to himself. No girls were fawning over him like dogs in heat. No one pulled a gun out and pointed it at him and proclaimed his lycanthropy to the world.

Yugi smiled slightly at the realization of the familiarity. It mirrored his situation slightly. Yami was still Yami. It was just a new side of him and Yugi merely needed to find the new balance that could readily exist between them. He could accept it, he knew that. It was just a matter of finding out a way to do it.

"Will you…show me sometime?"

Yami stopped walking for a split second, turning his head in confusion. "Show you what?" He shook his head after a moment. "You're not…actually asking what I think you're asking…are you?"

"I'm pretty sure I am, actually."

"But that's…why would you want to see that?"

"Because I need to." He left it at that, instead turning his attention back to the sidewalk in front of them. His brows furrowed as he caught sight of someone in a thin crowd down the street. A familiar head of bright brown hair cut shoulder length moved gently across the pavement. The girl was slim in build but with copious curves that made it hard to look away. Her legs were well-defined in that way that was attributed to dancers. Her skirt was a shiny black leather, her shirt a white button down. A tiny blue jean jacket rested on her shoulders, the length of it barely covering the curve of her breasts as she continued walking. Boots with an inch-high heel came up halfway along her legs, socks dark gray.

"Whoa, Yami, wait a second—is that…is that Anzu Mazaki?" he asked slowly, eyes nearly popping out of his head as he gripped at his arm tightly with his free hand. The red-eyed teen blinked and then turned his head to follow his line of sight, nodding after a moment. His eyes tracked her effortlessly and he looked so familiar with the sight of her that Yugi almost felt like an outsider at that moment.

"Yes. She's part of my pack, actually," Yami stated without much interest, turning away again. His eyes flickered with the brief touch of light from the sun that turned his gaze a bright wine color from their usual ruby depth.

"Huh? But I thought that she died in that car crash—with her family. They couldn't find her body but they proclaimed her dead…" Yugi muttered, eyes widening in horror as he looked to him in startled surprise. His mouth had gone dry and his stomach was twisting as he faced him. "Yami…you bit her…?"

"I was the one that crashed into their car. It was an accident. But they looked away for a second and I hit the brake but they had run the light. We hit and her parents died on impact. But she was dying so I bit her…" He stayed quiet for a moment. "I didn't do it without consent, though. I've never bitten anyone besides her—and that was because she begged me to save her. She asked for help and I made sure she understood before I bit her."

Yugi stared at him in shock before slowly shaking his head and smiling slightly in momentary wonderment. "I wish I had known. I thought she was dead all this time…"

"It's only been two years," Yami said simply before blinking and looking at him quizzically. "I suppose that would seem longer for a human—especially a worried friend. I'm sorry…if I had known that you two were once friends, I would have mentioned it long ago, but I never knew so I didn't think to do so."

"It's fine, Yami. It doesn't matter that much."

* * *

Yugi settled onto the large slab of stone, crossing his legs and licking his lips as the other teen began to pull off his jacket. He took the article of clothing when he started to toss it aside, clicking his tongue for his attention and holding his palm out. He gathered it into his lap, breathing in roughly at the thought of the other going through the Change in front of him. And Yami kicked his shoes off after a long minute, following it with the tank top he was wearing, passing it over to him again as he nudged his boots away to give him more room. Yugi watched him work off his belts and for a moment, a single, split second image of them together crept into his mind, with Yami above or below him, their mouths locked, faces flushed equally, the other's body rippling with thrusts received or given. His jeans were shrugged off and passed over but his boxers remained on his hips while his socks were stripped and tossed aside.

"And you're sure you're fine with this?" Yami asked slowly, tilting his head towards him and frowning faintly, searching his eyes for any sign of distress at the thought.

"Aibou, if I did not want to watch you do this, I would never have asked you to, okay?" he murmured, smiling and nodding in encouragement. "I promise, aibou, I want to see you change. Just…you know…remember that I'm still getting used to the idea that someone can even change into wolves in the first place."

"Yes, I know that, but I…Yugi, it's not a pretty sight."

"Yes, and here I was thinking that it would be like a unicorn giving birth—rainbows and butterflies everywhere," he drawled, rolling his eyes and shaking his head. "Damn it Yami, at this rate I'm going to just start assuming that you don't even trust me if you keep asking this bullshit. I don't need a warning, okay? I know that it's not going to be pretty! How can it be? You're not putting on a pelt that magically changes you and lends you limited immortality. You're not phasing suddenly into an animal that matches your personality. You are quite literally going through a physical change. And I want to see it—because I want to know what it would be like should I decide that I want you to bite me."

Yami stopped short for a split second, swallowing hard before turning away and reaching up to scratch at his throat lightly. "I do trust you. Don't…ever doubt that. If I didn't trust you, I would never have spoken a word to you without being asked a question. You've seen me speak to other people…they speak and I ignore them unless they ask me a question. I just…it is grotesque to watch."

"Yes, but you also asked me about considering anything and everything about being bitten. And I want to make sure that I know every pro and con and don't try to make it seem like it's…better or worse than it really is," Yugi explained, smiling at him gently and nodding again in encouragement. "I just need to know how it all goes."

Yami sighed softly with a nod and reached up to rub his eyes. "All right. Very well." He sighed softly and shook his head slightly. "I'm going to go through the traditional Change—it takes a few minutes, so don't be surprised by how much grotesqueness there is. But there is no actual reason to accelerate it like there would be if I were about to fight or hunt."

Yugi nodded in understanding and braced a hand against the stone, the coolness making his palm itch for a split second. The rough contours pressed against his skin as he pushed more of his weight into the limb, watching Yami closely. His leg jerked with anticipation and he barely resisted the urge to start bouncing his knee. Swallowing hard and trying to prepare himself better, he crossed his legs at the knees, biting his lip.

Yami gave him a sideways glance. The other boy gave him a strained smile and ducked his head in embarrassment. Of course his nervousness must have been affecting him. He wondered if it would take too long for it to make him unable to go through with it.

He crossed his legs a second time, ignoring the way his jeans bit into his skin with the new position. Tilting his head up once more, he found that the other boy had settled himself onto his hands and knees a couple of feet away. Yami's back arched upwards and his spine jutted beneath his skin for a moment. His jaw clenched and a low moaning howl hissed through his teeth. A growl rumbled in his chest and the muscles twitched along his jaw, the column of his neck cording with pressure. A choking gag of a noise crept out and Yugi flinched but held himself still. He had asked for this. And Yami knew what he was doing. So he had no reason to worry. But regardless, his stomach twisted and his first instinct was to leap forward and tell him to stop. Immediately after came the urge to ask if there was a way to help him. And he was rather sure there was nothing he could offer that would take some of the strain from this experience.

Yami heaved, but his jaw refused to open. His eyes flashed with flecks of gold around the pupils. His pupils grew blown in size, nearly consuming his irises completely. Yugi watched his head tick in sporadic intervals, his back arching further. He refused to raise his head higher and Yugi had to lean forward, threatening to fall straight off the rock to see completely. His muscles coiled beneath his skin like snakes. His shoulder blades rose upwards in unison with his upraised spine.

A long string of saliva fell from his mouth as he opened his mouth. His lips twisted into a silent snarl, the saliva beading grossly as it fell away from his canines. His sides heaved with the effort to breathe properly. His spine contorted once more, popping like rapid gunfire. His fingers stretched forward and scraped at the earth for a moment. Yugi watched the digits dig into the soft soil, nearly disappearing entirely for a moment.

His arms corded with tension and then relaxed once more. His jaw clenched once more. Yugi listened to him inhale sharply and hiss. The tension eased in his jaw for a split second then grew once more. His red eyes glittered with flecks of gold. His arms and legs grew rigid, back rising once more as he opened his mouth again. Long beads of saliva fell forward, stinking of bile, and Yugi flinched.

He watched his throat contort with a choked swallow. Bile rose in the back of his throat. Tension made his stomach twist. His own throat worked with an uneasy swallow. But his eyes never left the other boy. Coarse hair was slowly beginning to push through his writhing skin. Every muscle in his body corded violently, pulsing beneath his skin.

His back shot up once more. His teeth ground together and a low snarl split the air. Two panting breaths were highlighted by dripping rivulets of drool. Burning saliva was tinged with yellow from the bile he was trying to suppress.

His back arched once more to an unnatural height. Yugi could count every single vertebra there. His heart raced as Yami dropped his head forward again. His skin rippled wildly as his back seemed to fold in on itself like a suitcase being snapped shut. A long whimper bubbled up from his throat.

Yugi shivered and shook his head briefly. Why was this taking so long? Surely if Yami knew how to change at will, then this should not have been taking so long, right? Was he stunting it in order to show him each terrible bit? He fought away the scowl that started to furl across his face. Of course he was. Yami was trying to show him everything in more detail than the Change would have been otherwise.

His head rose slightly, eyes meeting his briefly for a second. His pupils were blown wider, shaking and rolling within his eyes' sockets. His fingers dug away into the earth once more. The backs of his hands changed, tendons bulging, wrists thickening. Another snarl rolled out of his mouth, though he swallowed the end of it as he tried to keep quiet.

For a split second Yugi had the impulse to reach out to touch him. His mind grew blank with nothing but this desire. And for a moment Yugi was lost as to what to do. But he had already found his balance again. He took a small step forward. Yami's head twisted to face him, eyes wide. A moment passed between them briefly. Comfortably, the other boy came to his side. Yami opened his mouth to speak but wound up choking on vomit, arching his back and coughing up bile.

Yugi's palm touched his shoulder lightly. Fire burned his skin and left electricity shaking in his veins. The muscles bulged and shifted. Coarse hair tickled his palms briefly. His hand moved softly over his skin and he lowered himself onto his knees at his side. Yami gave him another surprised look, swallowing harshly. Yugi gave him a gentle smile and rubbed his shoulder blade once more. He pressed his weight more into his crouched position, soaking the legs of his jeans.

His back arched and he drew in a gulp of air, muscles completely taut. This time his head shot upwards. The saliva burned a trail down his chin. Strings of yellow dripped down to the straw. Wave after wave of movement rocked him violently. Hair sprouted and retracted under Yugi's palm. The knobs of his spine rose further upwards. The air was split with violent pops as his bones shifted beneath his skin. Yugi's hand drifted to the spot between his shoulders. His spine jutted and twisted beneath his fingers.

His back muscles twisted and shifted beneath his hand. Coarse hairs pushed upwards out of his skin, tickling his palm. Every one of his breaths burned the air with a harsh pant. Yugi could hear his heart now, feel its pulse. Fire leaped through his skin so that sweat bloomed over his palm. Each finger shook against his back. The thud of his heart in his chest sounded like a beating drum.

Finally the boy stopped heaving and shuddered. His body trembled from exhaustion and his head lowered to the ground. Yugi continued rubbing his shoulders. He honestly could not believe that Yugi was still there in that moment. Even more so that he was at his side, touching him. His skin stopped moving beneath his fingers as he massaged the spot. His spine retracted beneath his fingers. His shoulders were rising and twisting once more, the muscles along them bunched and thick, almost hunched. The hair had grown into a softness akin fur, with a coarse top layer and a softer undercoat.

Sweat bloomed up from the pores in his skin, coating Yugi's hand in seconds. Yugi turned his head to see his eyes. His pupils had receded slightly to a more natural size. His irises were glowing, the flecks of gold glimmering amidst a sea of red. His nails curved and thickened. Another wave of tension swept through him.

His muscles twisted and coiled beneath his fingers. His spine jutted upwards. His bones began to pop viciously. The air crackled with the constant racket of his bones shifting. Soft grinding pronounced their movements beneath his skin. His mouth stretched as his jaws opened fully once more. His teeth grew sharp and thickened drastically. His canines curved and stretched downwards. His gums bled bright red, turning his bile-threaded saliva dark.

Yugi felt his adrenaline spike even further. His hearing heightened and he could hear Yami's organs twisting inside of him. It was sloppy, wet noise, the sound of them twisting and rearranging. He could hear his heart pounding even more viciously now. It rose to a greater volume, making his entire frame shake with each beat. His face lengthened further, muzzle growing long and broad.

His ears began to sharpen and move to the top of his head. Dark fur grew in every inch of his body. His fingers began to grow coarsely skinned. Yugi could see them receding inwards, his nails thickening and turning black. His bones broke and inverted in a series of rapid pops. Muscle thickened along his flanks. His shoulders grew more defined. His body shook beneath his fingers and finally the shuddering passed.

Yami fell over on shaky legs, as if he could not hold himself any longer. Eyes wide, Yugi found the other teen lying flat on his stomach, legs bent at awkward angles. For a moment he imagined rugs made of animal skins and flinched at the pictures it produced. He was stretched in the perfect design for one, though his sides shook with little breaths. His tail wagged after a moment as he jumped to his paws with a gulp of air.

Yugi watched him shake himself out and stretch every bit of his muscles. His first step was slightly disoriented but his balance was regained immediately. Pacing forward a few feet, the wolf threw himself onto his side. Yugi thought momentarily of submissive tendencies among wolves and his stomach twisted at the image that sprang to mind once more. He shook his head slightly and went back to take a seat on the edge of the rock, watching him closely.

"Does it always hurt like that?" he asked slowly, watching him. His ears twitched and his eyes opened, at first peering seemingly at nothing, and then flickered to draw him in. His mouth opened wide, panting as his tail wagged and he threw himself to his feet again. A moment of silence passed and then the canine tossed its head back and forth in a firm shake.

"Okay, so did you stretch it out longer than was needed?" he demanded curtly, voice taking on a rough edge that mimicked the touch of the stone beneath his fingers. His jaw twitched and his eyes narrowed. The wolf ducked his head in response, raising a paw to cover its eyes in a playfully shameful expression.

Yugi rolled his eyes. "How am I supposed to snap at you when you're being all cute?" he demanded sharply, laughing when Yami pulled his foreleg away and threw himself to his feet again. His tail wagged lazily from side to side, doing absolutely nothing to hide his exuberance.

"All right. I'll save the interrogation for another time then," he teased, crossing his legs and watching him. "But I have to say, it wasn't too terribly grotesque. Although, you are definitely taking a shower and rinsing your mouth out when we get back to my place. I am so not touching or kissing you after that."

Yami huffed loudly but wagged his tail in response, turning around and spinning in a brief circle. Yugi admired the slender slope of his ribs when he took in his side profile. He admired the glossy sheen of his pelt, the thick hairs that seemed to share almost three shades of color. He admired the way that his coat showed off the bright red of cinnamon-brown in direct sunlight. He admired the narrow forechest, the long legs, the height and weight of the animal in front of him.

* * *

"So, how is…the Change after you've gotten used to it? Does it still hurt?"

Yami frowned as he picked at his chicken bone and cracked it roughly between his teeth. The splintering noise sent shivers down Yugi's spine but exhilaration made his breath quicken. Yami possessed such raw power even in this form, which wasn't even his natural skin in the first place. If the werewolves came from the wolves rather than the humans like mythology had always suggested, then…

He shook his head slightly and watched him. The bone split between his molars once more and his eyes briefly fell to the table before flickering to his again. The direct light from the bulbs overhead made them dilute and glimmer like fresh blood. The bone was pulled from his mouth after a moment and placed on the plate.

"It's painful—always. I mean, you are technically changing into a completely different form, no matter the fact that your entire species came about from wolves. You have all of your cells being killed and then regenerated and your DNA and RNA twisting itself to suit the Change. Your organs are all moving and your heart has to work at about sixteen times its average rate. Your bones have to break and regenerate. Your senses have to heighten and change to accommodate you…" He paused for a moment, chewing his cheek and then licking his lips as he plucked the other bone from the plate. Yugi watched him shatter it within his teeth, cutting it clean in half and splintering it more plentifully in one area. "It's painful but your body grows used to it. So really, it's only when you're just beginning to go about changing that it hurts. After the first handful your body begins to grow accustomed to it and it stores fat and muscle to burn away with the Change instead of having to go about destroying and regenerating your cells completely."

"Oh." He nodded slightly and propped his elbow on the table, watching him for a long minute before glancing at the bones curiously. "Do you actually eat them or only the marrow? I mean, as wolves, not just as people."

"Either. I generally just eat them because I can," Yami mumbled, shrugging and tossing another bit of shattered skeleton onto the plate, stripped of the marrow completely. "It's less work cleaning up and it's…as a wolf it's natural to want to eat them because of how beneficial they can be."

Yugi nodded again. "And…out of curiosity—and don't take offense to this, because I honestly don't mean it that way—are you guys…born as humans or wolves?"

Yami hesitated, grimacing faintly before sighing softly. "…Depends on the mothers, honestly. I was born a pup rather than human. My mother is more…in tune with her wolf nature than most of the others—it's what makes her such a great alpha. But, most often we're born as humans instead." He paused and licked his lips. "It's personal preference rather than anything else. The mother's change will spur the baby's so if they give birth in a certain form, that's what they will come out in."

He nodded again and settled more comfortably in his seat, laying his arms folded across the table and lowering his chin into his bent elbows. He was not at all oblivious to the way that, for a split second, Yami's eyes fell upon the curve of his back, taking in his spine with eagerness.

* * *

The body was twisted and mangled horribly. The skin had been stripped away in certain areas. The internal organs had been made a snack of. The spine had been torn open and broken into powdery dust. Sharp teeth marks had made punctures in the remaining vertebrae. Its skin was covered in bruises and scratch marks, with various gashes that had bled horribly but ceased to be of any importance any longer. Bones had been ripped open, split down the middle to show off devoured marrow. Clothes had been shredded and soaked in blood, scattered about endlessly amongst the straw and wet earth. Rivulets of dark, dried blood, coated what was left of the destroyed corpse. Eyelids were lowered halfway, sockets stripped of their possessions completely. They stared back at him lifelessly, empty and seemingly peering through him altogether. The hair had been stripped from its head, torn off in violent clumps and scattered away. The corpse was already half eaten by maggots—or at least what was left of it was.

Yugi stared at the carcass blankly for a long minute. And then he shifted his gaze to the lycanthrope next to him. Red eyes were locked on the lifeless puppet in front of them. His gaze was considerate, thoughtful, as it took in the carnage scattered before them. His jaw was set with a considerable amount of frustration and confusion. His eyebrows had grown furrowed, and his head was tilted slightly as he studied it.

"This…isn't a natural animal kill…is it? I mean, I know that mother bears can do that kind of thing, but that's not…how they eat, is it?" Yugi mumbled, searching his eyes and swallowing hard.

Yami shook his head easily. "No…it's a werewolf attack," he mumbled, tipping his head upwards as the small, distant boom of thunder seemed to make the air ripple. The sky was darkly set, with terribly black and shadowed gray clouds that blocked out every bit of blue. He allowed his eyes to drift over it for a moment and then closed his eyes as he drew in a deep breath. A familiar swirl of heavy humidity, with the promise of electricity and heavy rainfall, swept through his lungs. The air was oppressive and smothered the scent of the werewolf that had done this, be it hellhound or lycanthrope. But he thought he caught a trace of something familiar that laced itself through him briefly.

Yugi could taste the electricity on his tongue even as he looked at the body. It sizzled and crackled on his tongue, like live energy. The hot air amplified the touch of it as it lit his mouth with flavor. His tastebuds exploded with it and he looked eagerly towards the sky. But he could smell something besides the decay of the leaves and fallen straw. It was sweet and distant, almost like honeysuckle, and it made his mouth water faintly as he tried to breathe it in more thoroughly. It was hauntingly familiar to him, the way it lingered in his skin warmly with a distant chill to follow. But his mind could not trace it back to its origins.

Yugi went to ask if Yami caught the smell but the lycanthrope was too caught up in the taste of the lightning that was awaiting them with violent booms and shattered clouds illuminated against the darkness. It was going to erupt, and Yugi could see the absolute excitement in the other teen's eyes. They were dancing, flickering with life. He smiled warmly at the sight of it, enticed by the excitement in the other's face.

They both felt the thick, bloated raindrops as the sky exploded with the force of their departure. Thunder ripped through the air with a violence that made his skin tingle. Lightning crackled and illuminated the world in bright white that rivaled sunlight.

Yugi dug his hands into his pockets, already growing soaked to the bone. Yami growled in distinct approval and then glanced at him. His cheeks burned faintly and the other boy smiled wider, shaking his head slightly.

"I forgot for a second…how easily humans can get sick," Yami mumbled in way of apology, swallowing hard before reaching for his hand. Yugi raised a brow but slipped his hand into his, allowing him to twine their fingers and start down the small slope. All he could hear was the rain hitting the canopy of leaves as they started through the woods. Yami glanced back once before turning back to him. "Werewolves don't usually eat humans…just so you know that…"

Yugi shook his head. "I know. I was kind of expecting they didn't or else it would have been far more obvious, right?" he mumbled. "Which does it seem more likely to be? Hellhound or lycanthrope?"

Yami allowed his eyes to take in the way that the leaves shook with a brief gust of wind, watching the water that fell in a torrent downwards. The soiled straw was soaked within seconds, the leaves weighted heavily overhead. The ground squelched with too much water, threatening to send them both to their asses if they didn't pick their steps cautiously.

"Hellhounds tend to cause a bit more chaos and only attack when there is a reason. It's possible that they could have stumbled across them while they were changing. Or maybe while they were hurt. It's possible that it was a lycanthrope too. I mean, generally werewolves don't stray towards hunting people. But it's possible at times. If they feel threatened or if a deal was double-crossed with a human. One hellhound subspecies' sole purpose is to destroy and eat humans if they get too close to knowing how to summon one." He shook his head slightly. "I think it was more likely a lycanthrope this time. And the problem with that is…the only pack here…"

"Is yours."

* * *

Yugi settled on top of his bed, pulling the towel away from his hair and dropping it into a heap next to him. For a moment he could see Yami eyeing it, almost possessively, as if he were dying to take it from him and maybe rub it over himself as well, but the lycanthrope had already turned away again. Yugi ignored this for a moment, reaching for his homework folder to pull out the partner take-home quiz that they had both brought there after school.

He started to open his mouth to speak the words that had been singeing his tongue for the last thirty minutes while they had been walking home. Instead he closed his mouth again and moved to toss his towel straight into the other's arms when he started to pick out his own sheet of paper. Yami caught it without looking up, though he did stop short and stare momentarily.

Yugi watched him, curious, and nearly laughed out loud when Yami drew it close to his face, sniffing and closing his eyes with a small rumbling growl of a noise that sounded distinctly like a purr. He looked pleased with the smell that he gained from the piece of cotton and Yugi shook his head, resisting the urge to laugh once more. He was tempted to ask if that was a wolf thing but then remembered that more often than not his mother had called his father up to ask if he could send back a shirt. She always said that they smelled of his dad and she loved when she got one of those when they were not together. She would wear them to bed for weeks before the smell left the shirt, and Yugi had to admit that he had kept Yami's jacket close by that week before he had spoken to him again. The entire time he had snuggled it or worn it while doing homework, playing video games, and not once had he really considered what he was doing. So he guessed it was not just a werewolf thing to be so widely enamored with the smell of someone else in cloth like this.

He watched him snuggle it briefly, breathing in deeply before sighing loudly and then tossing it aside as if he wanted nothing to do with it. Yugi was tempted to say that he could have it if he wanted but then he doubted his mother would like finding a towel missing like that.

"So…you know what I'm going to ask you…right?" he asked slowly, softly, swallowing hard to make sure that his voice did not sound accusatory in any way. His voice came out soft and level, though a touch of caution had crept forward as the undertone.

He blinked and then looked at his own piece of paper, staring at it momentarily before nodding and sighing softly. "Ask it," he mumbled, voice coming out exhausted as if being drawn in from the thunderstorm had done nothing but make him feel imprisoned in the house with Yugi.

But he realized it was nothing more than the stress of the question that he knew Yugi would ask. And it was the many thoughts that must have been scrambling for focus in his mind that made him so tired. So the other boy stayed silent for a moment, debating the way to ask, or rather to state what he had to say, as asking the question might just make Yami feel weaker than he did even then.

"I thought you said you were the only werewolf that was seeing a human like that," he finally commented, putting his sheet on top of his science notebook and writing his name. He could tell that Yami was relieved with the absence of his gaze on his skin just with the free movements that he made in producing his own pencil and working on his sheet as well. But Yugi could also see his hands shaking slightly at the statement, and his eyes had grown somewhat dazed as he continued scribbling his name in his elegant handwriting.

"I thought I was," the lycanthrope murmured softly, shaking his head briefly as his voice grew wistful and soft with confusion. "I don't know of anyone else having decided to have paid attention to a human…"

"So then…could it have been random or something? Like a rogue werewolf or something along those lines?" he asked, making his voice low and soothing, the edge underlined with a soft coaxing that Yami tipped his head at and looked appreciative towards when he blinked slowly.

The werewolf shook his head and his hands trembled once more, making Yugi swallow hard, sick to his stomach with the thought of making him feel so nervous or possibly scared and useless. "I do not…think so. We would have caught their scent by now. And there aren't usually rogue werewolves—unless they turn on their pack alphas in some way, then a werewolf runs in a pack and never really alone unless circumstance calls for it. And we would have caught onto a loner being in Domino. We're…too large a pack to let one go unnoticed."

"So…it really would have to be one from your pack then…"

He lowered his head, staring at the paper in his hands, and nodded shakily. "Yeah…there's no other explanation," he muttered softly.

Yugi nodded and closed his eyes momentarily. He had no idea if he should continue or not, though his answer was given when Yami continued speaking, seemingly rushing but dragging his voice all at once.

"But it does look like a killing that would have come from being rejected by a human. I saw one of those one time—it happened when I was younger and we had to move because of how savage it was and how the humans in that city turned on any canine without collars. And wolves…wolves can't _wear_ collars, not unless it's for small periods of time. It tends to drive us crazy and pushes on our sense of freedom." He paused and shook his head faintly, narrowing his eyes into gleaming slits of dark glittering ruby gems cast against dark black. "And my parents know about you but anyone in our pack would have had to tell them immediately if they decided to take a mate in a human or risk exposure. They would have had to long before then and…I don't understand how this could have happened, Yugi."

"Do you think anyone in your pack would know? Maybe they just decided not to tell because they didn't think your parents would approve after what happened but they didn't know how to handle the rejection and…" He trailed off for a moment and then narrowed his eyes. "Tell me about that, Yami…I know that it's not pretty for werewolves when a rejection happens, but to kill so violently like this…"

Yami shook his head. "This is mild in comparison to the one that I saw when I was younger," he commented softly, sighing and looking up at him through his lashes. Yugi fought the urge to jump to his feet and move over to hug him when he saw the despair so abundant on his face. "I told you that werewolves—both species—do everything in large scale and nothing in small. In that way we are unable to deal when our efforts are…proven useless or unworthy of attention. We put everything—heart, soul, mind, _everything_ —into the person we choose to be with and when we're rejected…It's like a switch goes off in their heads. Their entire purpose was put into pleasing that person and their efforts were discarded like trash. So they…it splits their minds violently, makes them vicious and more likely to do things that they wouldn't otherwise. They could be the sweetest wolf in existence, but if they were rejected—no matter how gently—it would devastate them. The depression sets in almost immediately and then the rage comes with it—"

"You weren't like that," Yugi pointed out, cutting him off as he shook his head faintly and frowned slightly.

"…I had hoped that you would…give it a chance." He offered a weak smile. "My hopes weren't in vain. This wolf's were."

* * *

"What about the girl from the ice cream shop? Was she one of your pack members too?" Yugi asked curiously, biting his lip and watching him closely for a moment. Yami paused mid-bite of his potato salad and then swallowed before looking at him.

"Yes. Her name is Kisara. She's actually the omega in the pack—she's originally from an outside pack and joined us a couple of years ago, about three months after Anzu, actually. Most of her pack had dispersed so when we came around she asked for admittance and joined us when my mother gave approval."

"What's it like for the omega?" he inquired after a long minute of silence between them. "I mean…they serve a purpose, right? They aren't just…there, are they?"

"They normally help diffuse tensions…" Yami cringed slightly and then made a small clicking noise with his tongue. "Sometimes it's by playing the punching bag but most of the time it's just by listening to arguments and helping to ease any fights that come about."

"So…she's the omega because she wasn't part of the original pack?"

"Well, no, it was like that originally, but she's had ample opportunity to move up in rank. She's just a lot quieter and softer-spoken and tends to take peacekeeping more seriously than most would otherwise. She chooses to remain the omega, but she's not forced to be."

"And are tensions always high? I mean, do threats happen often or…?"

"Physical altercations are always rare in a balanced pack. Normally you just have a few bickers and spats and the occasional argument over food but it's mostly in play and fun. My pack is extremely balanced but we have those few times where the tensions get too high—such as now. Being in Domino is setting everyone on edge right now. We've never been so close to human population before—we're practically right next to the city and we're all used to being wolves, not humans. So we're all…undone by it and frustrated…" He paused and then shrugged one shoulder slightly. "There aren't any constant fights or anything like that. No one is leaving—they all love being in the pack so it's nothing bad. It's just that stress levels are high and Kisara is playing peacekeeper more often than usual. But it will settle soon enough."

Yugi licked his lips and watched him pick at his food once more before biting his lip lightly. "So then…if I were to join the pack…?" he asked slowly, cautiously, watching his face closely and taking in every bit of his expression that he could.

Yami stayed quiet for a moment and then settled back against his chair, watching him closely. "Most likely they would be a little upset but not to the point that it would cause any true trouble. They wouldn't turn on you, if that's what you mean. Most likely they would jeer at you some but eventually they would get over it. Especially since I'm the future alpha and my parents would love you just because I do."

He nodded after a long moment, pursing his lips faintly and then shaking his head slightly. "Okay," he murmured, smiling when he saw Yami narrow his eyes and stare pointedly. "What? I said I would consider everything before I made a decision, remember? And obviously the pack and its living situation would be more than just a momentary thing, right?"

Yami stayed silent for a moment and then shook his head, suddenly leaning forward and staring at him closely. He frowned faintly, tilting his head, and waited for him to speak, rewarded a few long minutes later when the werewolf finally opened his mouth once more.

"Yugi, I appreciate you actually…considering this—in its entirety," he murmured, clearing his throat awkwardly, his voice scratching faintly at the edges. "And if it were possible to love you more, I would. But…I need to make something clear to you. Right now."

He nodded without hesitation, listening carefully as Yami lowered his voice and a low growl made up the undertone of his soft-spoken words.

"You are not going to meet the pack. Not now. Not ever. Unless you choose to be bitten, you are not going to be allowed near _any_ of them—and that includes Anzu," he stated firmly, narrowing his eyes when Yugi blinked stupidly at the statement. "Oh yes, I know about that. I know that you tried to talk to her the other day when you saw her. She doesn't remember you—she knows your name but she doesn't remember anything past that. Most of her memories aside from time spent with her family are lost—the accident stripped her of almost everything. And attempting to rekindle your friendship with her will give you no results aside from possibly getting attacked. A startled werewolf pushed into something is likely to turn their teeth on you before they are to try to make small talk, Yugi."

He flinched faintly and nodded for him to continue, swallowing hard at the statement. He had hoped to ask how she was doing, just to see if she was okay. That explained the blank look she had given him before she had wandered off when he tried to get her attention. That also explained the way that Yami had hurried off with her when he finally noticed he was there too. He had ignored him, however, so Yugi had assumed that Yami had not noticed him and Anzu had gone with him instead because he had called for her attention.

"She doesn't remember me?" he asked quietly, frowning, swallowing hard at the idea and sighing softly. A hurt note crept into his voice and he noticed Yami flinch almost inconceivably. "O-oh…okay. I…I can…yeah, okay, I just…I wanted to know how she was…"

He turned away immediately, clearing his throat awkwardly and moving his fork to poke at his potato salad once more. "I'm sorry—"

"There's nothing to apologize for. She's alive—and safe. I thought she was dead. That's better than nothing." Yugi hesitated before settling back in his seat. "Anyways, continue. I'm not meeting the pack unless I commit myself to becoming a wolf too?"

"Yes. Because, with tensions like this—and the longer we remain in Domino and not further outwards towards the mountain ranges they will just keep growing—they are liable to turn on you."

"Oh…"

"Yugi, I only know of all of ten relationships with humans that did not end up similarly to this," Yami stated quietly, clearing his throat and swallowing as he ducked his head momentarily. "And none of them happened in my time—in fact they happened generations before, so long ago that it's more like a dream than a recollection whenever someone speaks of them. There was the hellhound Dartz, who was eventually driven mad when the humans turned on his mate for having ties with him. There was the lycanthrope Timaeus, who lived with his mate who eventually gave birth to the very family tree that would lead to my parents. There was Isis who ran away with her human lover even after her pack cast her out. There was Aileen who did everything in her power to remain human with her lover. There were the triplets whose names I have forgotten, and a handful of others."

Yugi blinked at him and nodded in encouragement as the werewolf hesitated.

"The point, Yugi…is that most relationships with humans are disasters. The humans usually reject them and it drives them insane—and the madness and depression set in instantly. Like a sudden thunderstorm. Then the human gets killed, the werewolf grows even further insane and eventually loses even the capability to function properly because of their mental state's imbalance, and they become another story for the pups to hear so that they do not venture to play with the humans." Yami shook his head faintly and narrowed his eyes once more. "If a human and werewolf become involved, it is almost purely for nothing more than sex and relief of stress. It is like friends with benefits but if the wolf senses something more from the human then they leave them and cut all ties. Most werewolves won't even do that much, for fear that they might grow attached or they might grow insane due to rejection."

"So…then you came into this with your own thoughts and judgments about it all?" Yugi asked slowly, nodding at him and settling back in his seat as they stared at each other. Yami started to open and close his mouth, trying to rebut the statement, but wound up bowing his head instead. "So then why did you even try it?"

"Because I…"

"Never mind. It doesn't matter why you did. It just matters that you did." He paused. "And I don't regret anything and I haven't actually even considered rejecting you—hell, you tell me to jump and I ask how high. Fuck, you sneak into my room and pull me out for ice cream dates at one in the morning and I never even truly consider how strange it is."

"I—"

"Relax, I'm not saying anything to hurt you. I said I don't regret anything, aibou." He licked his lips. "I admire you, actually, for stepping out of your comfort zone for me. But at the same time, I have to wonder why. And I have to think about what would happen if I said no about being bitten. What do you think would happen? Do I honestly have a choice or…?"

"What? Of course you have a choice!" Yami cried out, sputtering slightly before blushing just beneath his eyes, cheeks stained a momentary pink as he shook his head. "The only thing you don't have a choice about is…meeting the pack if you don't want to get bitten—or association with Anzu. The pack would not take kindly to a human's knowledge of them, regardless of whose m—p-partner they are."

"You can say 'mate'," Yugi commented with a gentle smile. "I don't mind if you say it."

He nodded again, looking almost relieved, and smiled in response, a small upwards tug of his lips. "Regardless of whose mate you are," he stated, tasting the words in a way that made his face light up at the end of the statement. "I'm the son of the alphas and in love with a human. Bringing you into that wouldn't protect you—it would make you a target. They would most likely demand to have you bitten then and there and forced into the Change to assure that you would never say anything about it or they would have you killed on the spot."

His smile fell away immediately and he blinked in surprise.

"And any member of the pack that has relations with humans have told my parents and gotten permission and that's strictly for sex and nothing else. They don't build relationships with them or anything—I'm the first one since Timaeus to even look towards a human mate, Yugi. It would seem more like some kind of betrayal than anything else as far as they are concerned." He shook his head and messed with his salad once more. "I don't mean to scare you, aibou, I just…"

He wanted to say that he hadn't but he remembered Yami could hear his heart. So he knew that it had kicked up several paces in surprise at the thought of being bitten and forced into the Change or being killed immediately. So he kept silent, instead nodding when he realized Yami was watching him from his peripheral.

"And if you didn't want to become a wolf…if you would still have me, then I would find a way to become human—or as close to human as I possibly can."

Yugi stared at him as if he had been slapped and then opened and closed his mouth before shaking his head firmly. "No, Yami, that's not happening."

"What?"

"Fuck that, no, aibou. I wouldn't allow that to happen to you. You love being a wolf! I couldn't take that away from you—"

"But if you won't join me as a wolf—"

"I never said I wouldn't," he cut in, voice taking on a slightly sharp note. "I am considering, Yami, which is what you asked me to do, remember? I'll choose what to do as we go along. I'm not going to rush a decision like this. But I will tell you that even if I choose not to become a wolf, I will be _damned_ if I _ever_ let you consider trying to be human for me. Fuck that, Yami. You're not about to give up who you are just for me, understand?"

"But isn't that what I'm asking of you?"

"No, it's not," Yugi snapped angrily, glaring and shaking his head sharply as he got up. "You're giving me an opportunity to grow more than I can like this—so, no, I don't think you are. But I…Yami, give me time."

"I—I didn't mean to—"

"No, aibou, I know that. I just…I ask these things with the intention to listen and then I hear something that makes me cringe and I just…I feel like I'm a ticking time bomb and everything is closing in on me. And that's my fault, not yours. I just…gods, Yami, I think I'm just scared. I think I've scared myself trying to learn all of this."

"I…I'm sorry…"

Yugi shook his head, smiling at him in gentle amusement. "No, aibou. You don't need to apologize. I just need to figure out how to pace myself before I go any further with this, okay?"

"O-okay…"

He started to apologize before moving forward to kiss his forehead, smiling warmly when he pulled back and saw how confused Yami looked. "I love you, Yami."

* * *

She smelled of vanilla and apple, with a tiny hint of cherry blossoms. Yugi had come across the scent from nowhere. It had burned in his nostrils as he looked up in confusion. His head was throbbing from where he had gotten hit across the temple. His heart seemed to be stuttering as he opened his eyes slowly and peered at her through his lashes. Blood pounding in his ears, his stomach twisted and burned. He tried to breathe and his chest ached with the effort. His ribs burned as they expanded. Spots of silver and white exploded behind his eyes.

The scent was heavy as it drifted over him. For a moment it invoked various childhood memories that he had not thought about for years. His mind struggled sluggishly with the task of orienting itself. But his memories were just beneath the surface, scratching like an animal looking for shelter in the midst of a horrible storm. They refused to let him rest, burning beneath his thoughts and trying viciously to sweep through him.

He tipped his head up, peering at her. For a moment his mind could not connect the dots. His vision was still swimming, his breathing was labored, and his balance was off even while remaining seated. He squinted, staring, and waited for the dots to phase away from his vision. Vaguely his sense of touch told him that he was sitting on a cushion of some kind. It spoke volumes of comfort in the confusion that his mind was wading through. His fingers twitched and grasped at softened velvet.

His voice bubbled out but it was an incoherent jumble, slurred as it was dragged from his mouth. He tipped his head forward, closing his eyes tightly as his head spun. The room needed to stop spinning before he could do anything else. Even with his eyes clenched shut, the sensation was still there. His mind was rolling and spinning, twisting and leaving him confused.

But where the hell was he?

The scent that burned in his nostrils did not help to stop the heady sensation that made his senses spin even more. There was something sticky and hot in the air too, cloaking it and mingling with the vanilla. He didn't recognize it but he knew it was nothing good. It stung and burned his insides with every second he inhaled and he could not help but feel sick with disgust.

The temperature was oppressively warm, slowing his scramble for balance once more. Yugi blinked once more, peering at his own clothing, and then slowly drew his eyes up. She was leaning against the wall, a wine glass in her hand, smirking at him. It took him several minutes to finally tack the name to the face and his heart fell into his stomach. By the gods, he hoped he was seeing things…

"Anzu," he whispered tiredly, voice still slurred slightly but not too terribly drawn out. His efforts were rewarded with a wider smirk and Yugi blinked in confusion at the brunette. What was she…? How had she…? Had she done something to him…? Sluggishly he peered at her through his lashes, the black edges helping to clear his strained vision slightly. Her face looked as beautiful as it always had while they were growing up. But her eyes were cold, glittering with fierce hardness like steel. Weakly he tried to shift position and wound up whimpering at the pain that flared through his neck at the attempt to grow more comfortable.

"Aw, don't do that, dear little Yugi," she stated, smiling at him. "If you move your head the wrong way, you're going to end up bleeding out, sweetheart." Her lips curved up a bit more, a small edge of something creeping across her features. He had no idea if his tired mind was playing tricks on him or not, but he could see it now. As he stared at her blankly and tried to find even the slightest hint of balance, he found himself looking upon a face twisted with absolute loathing and disgust.

The liquid in the wine glass was thicker than an alcoholic beverage. It sloshed but did not swirl as a drink might have. It left residue along the sides and seemed to stain it like coffee. Yugi stared at it blankly for a long minute. What was she drinking?

"I've tidied up a little," she cooed, gesturing around with her glass and smirking wider as she took a few small steps forward. Yugi watched her feet, clad in high heels that reminded him of some of the girls in his porn videos, as they seemed to click even against the carpet. Whatever was in that cup had dribbled down her lips in a thick line, trailing to leave little droplets along the carpet as it fell from her thin chin. "There was blood everywhere, Yugi. You would not believe how much there was. It was so beautiful, bathing the walls and the carpet. It was like…buckets of red paint thrown all around. And you just have so much in you. I'm guessing that Yami has gotten you to chew a bone or two. I could smell the marrow in your skeleton from miles away."

Yugi stared at her in confusion before his face grew somewhat hot with the natural, automatic reaction of embarrassment at the statement. He had to admit that he had begun to wonder about it. Ever since Yami had eaten the marrow in front of him for the first time and even explained it to him later, he had wondered. And so he had tried it. It had become something of a habit to crack the bones open and eat the marrow. It was odd at first but it had grown on him.

He swallowed hard as her words truly connected in his head. She had cut his throat. She was drinking his blood. She was going to eat him. She was going to literally eat him. Yugi stared at her in absolute horror and confusion.

"I'm sorry, Yugi. I know that my visit came so _unexpectedly_ and I really should have done something to warn you," she drawled, smirking at him and taking a sip of the bright red liquid. His mind was still trying to truly recognize that she had just said that she was sipping his blood. That was him in that cup. He was being…consumed out of a wine glass due to a cut in the side of his neck. "And I almost wish that we could have gotten to know each other again now that Yami has told you about everything that happened. You know, when I first woke up after he bit me, I could only remember your face and your name—and you've grown _so_ much. I was amazed when I saw you at school. But I was _much_ more amazed by how _bold_ you seem to be now. Humans are usually so skittish when it comes to wolves. Especially considering the fact that most wolves will kill a human that knows about them."

Yugi shook his head slightly, still mystified. That was him in the cup. She was drinking him. And she was going to get more when she got the chance. She was going to continue to drain his blood. She was going to continue to drink him.

"But now you are just so _close_ to my brother and I simply could not wait any longer to spend some time together again—just like old times." She sipped at the liquid in her glass again, smiling at him like a cat staring at a canary, and Yugi blinked in dull confusion. He shook his head again, slowly, and blinked at her once more with a blank expression. "Relax your throat and rest against the couch like a good little boy now, Yugi. We can't have you hurting yourself and bleeding out, now can we?"

He hesitated and a familiar smile crept across her face, one that Yugi recognized fully from growing up with her. Her face lit up with the excitement contained there, and her lips curved in cruel satisfaction, the only difference from the usual happiness that he had known her to exhibit before.

His natural instinct to survive told him to collapse on the floor before her, kneeling and begging for her to let him go. And perhaps he would have done this had it not been clear in her azure eyes. He would not escape until she allowed it. And the only way that it would come about was after she devoured him. She would drink his blood, eat his flesh, and savor his bones, crushing him into nothingness and swallowing him completely. Perhaps he would be a cache like the carcasses that wolves sometimes buried and went back to later. Or perhaps she would eat him in one sitting.

Now he knew where the scent had come from. She had always smelled of vanilla and apple. That was what he had smelled when they were in the woods and the apparent hiker's body was found. That was what he had been so confused by. That little drifting scent that had faded into nothingness before Yami had ever caught it due to the rain.

Yugi stared at her for a long minute, eyeing the glass in her hand slowly. His head was still somewhat light but not as if it weighed nothing. It was more like he had too little thoughts. It was as if reason had abandoned him entirely. There was no dizziness. There were no spots behind his eyes any longer. But his vision still swayed and dipped, only because of the reality of the situation. The horror of his realizations burned like electricity. He was going to die. And for a moment he wondered if Yami would ever even know. Would he find him? Or would she leave nothing there for him to find? Perhaps she would kill him and then convince him to feast on him as well. Maybe that would be better than nothing, regardless of how terrible it was.

"Thirsty?" she asked, holding up the glass by the stem and smirking at him with a delicately raised eyebrow.

Yugi felt a swirl of fire deep in his stomach. Disgust crawled up in the form of bile. He squeezed his eyes shut tightly for a moment. "No," he croaked softly, shaking his head slowly. His eyes flickered open and he looked up at her through his lashes again. "No, Anzu."

She nodded and smiled. "You know, that's actually the root of my problem with Yami these days. My dear brother does not know the taste of a healthy human. He doesn't know what it's like to snap their bones between his teeth and devour them completely. Humans may be the scourge of the earth, but some of them—the rare ones—are healthy and taste delectable. There are those rare occasions, when they are not so terribly pumped with disgusting chemicals." Anzu took a moment, sipping at her glass, and Yugi stared at the way her lips were stained red with his blood. If not for the lipstick that already coated her mouth, he would have thought she had puckered the soft flesh and stuck it straight into her drink. "But then, Yami is more traditional as a lycanthrope. Born as a wolf, living life more as a wolf than as a human. Did you know that he could change fully since he was six? Or at least he could change at one point and did it a lot. But then he lost that ability. And somehow he wound up having it resurface when he was twelve."

Yugi blinked at her and tried to truly tear his eyes away from that godforsaken glass she held so firmly between her fingers. He could see the condensation where she had the tips of her left digits pressed into it. It was soft and misty and beautifully offset in comparison to the depth of the red.

"But Yami is still a predator…even if he will not dine like I choose. And that is the _real_ problem between you and him, isn't it, dear little Yugi? Hunting and devouring prey… The thing is, Yugi, no matter how hard you two attempt to bridge your differences, they will always be there. And they cannot be covered away with atrociously boring human fantasies—no sunset painted golden and purple, no long gaze upon the waters of the oceans, no hike through the forest, no moonlit night, no wade in a soft pool will _ever_ help you to understand each other. The situation will never be mended away into nothingness."

Yugi shook his head slowly. He had never thought it would be. But he was not about to contradict her. She held his life in her hands. And though she was going to take it soon enough, he was not about to play the part of the protestor. If he went along with it easily, perhaps she would show some kind of mercy. But then, she had not shown that same mercy to the John Doe they had found so horribly disfigured in the woods. And from the way she spoke of this, he felt as if she had possibly had even deeper a connection with him than he and Yami had originally thought while coming up with theories about the killing.

"See, there is a clear line between those who are the predator and those who are the prey. Of course, they may coexist and sometimes a miracle may happen in which they will come together for a common goal. But that is not natural, Yugi." She smiled at him and tipped the glass towards him. "I should know, Yugi. I crossed that line. I have experienced it all. But, oh, when you cross the line, there is only one direction you may go and no way to turn back. Mingling with prey brings only death and destruction and a waste of time. Yami needs to learn that—and he will! Because you two—oh, you _two_ —would never have lasted. I saw the way you looked at him at school when he mentioned that he was thinking about going hunting. I saw it even when he didn't. So _disgusted_ over something so _natural_."

Yugi stared at her blankly. Is that what she thought? No. For a split second he was tempted to try to explain but the reality of the situation struck him once more. She would never listen. She was lost somewhere in the fragments of her once beautiful mind. What had that boy done to break her so terribly?

His heart broke as he stared at her, pity and sympathy flooding through him. Yami had said that werewolves loved with everything. They did not hold anything back and there was no small scale for them. She had loved someone and they must have turned their back on her. Because of her secret. Because of her lycanthropy.

"Is this…revenge?" he whispered out, a croak that made her stop short of another statement. Her eyes widened faintly and laughter bubbled up.

"Revenge? For what, Yugi? For Yami biting me? For making me what I am? No! I love being what I am now. This is what I was always _born to be_ —I no longer have to suffer through the illusion that I am good. I do not have to pretend to follow the laws of right and wrong that mean so much to you, Yugi. I have learned that humans are nothing more than a virus—the _only_ unnatural creature—and that they _deserve_ to be destroyed." She laughed and shook her head, eyes wild as they peered into his. That lovely light he had always admired while they were growing up was completely gone. All he could see was bitter ferocity and cruel laughter, and it made his heart hurt as he swallowed hard. "I have learned that I am the only power and my word is law. I have the ability to kill without being suspected and strength to rival an African elephant with the simple touch of an adrenaline rush. I have the smarts and freedom of the wolf, the spirit of the wilderness itself."

"Who was he? The boy in the woods, Anzu…who was he…?"

"A mistake," the girl snarled, bitterness making her voice shrill before it lowered once more and she smiled darkly. "Human blood is the most disgusting thing. But you are all so pathetically weak and easy to prey upon. That is the line that I have crossed and make no mistakes, I have no regrets. There were once rules that I followed amongst the pack but now I have broken them—and I have found that they mean nothing."

Yugi watched her sip the glass of blood once more, realizing belatedly that she was getting low. It was too light along the surface, with a mere inch of dark red centered in the clear glass. The residue had blocked the sight of it until that moment but he knew now. And his stomach twisted with cold hatred that sizzled in his veins.

"Yami is the same, Yugi. He is just like me. As my alpha, he is the same," she snickered softly, smiling widely and moving forward to the edge of his coffee table with a nail tapping against the bright umber wood. "It is only you that keeps him from doing as he so desires. You keep him from experiencing his freedom at its greatest and force him to suppress his true nature as a _wolf_. You keep him away from everything he wants because of your little manipulations and make him cringe at his own existence! He wallows in desire and hates himself when he wants more than you can give him. He hates changing—and that was the one thing that makes him _happy_ , Yugi! That was the one thing that always makes him feel good! And now he hates it—and he hates hunting too, did you _know_ that? Or hasn't he told you? You— _you_ did this to him. You infect him with your pitiful nature and your disgusting weakness and your pathetic existence."

He stared at her blankly. Was she being truthful? Did he make Yami hate himself? Or was this a ploy to make him feel weaker than he was?

"But you know what, Yugi? I am not going to let you destroy my brother—my _alpha_. I will never let you tear away my bond with him. So we will wait here until he comes for you—because we both know he will; a wolf always knows when his mate is in trouble—and he will either bite you or he will feast on you with me. Do you understand me?"

Yugi nodded stupidly, swallowing hard until he felt his throat cord with tension. No, Yami would never do that. But if he did, maybe he could appreciate the irony of it. Perhaps he would find solace in the fact that it would be his corpse that was the first of Yami's victims. Perhaps he could enjoy the fact that it would feed him or something. He nearly laughed at his own stupid sense of consoling himself. How pathetic he was to assume such stupid things.

"And now I feel that I might have overestimated myself. I didn't know how rich your blood would be, Yugi," she cooed after a moment, placing her glass on the table and taking a seat, crossing her legs. "Your blood is so rich and far too much for my taste—far better than Seto. And I don't have the appetite to truly enjoy you as I would otherwise. But there are, of course, many other types of appetite…"

"Fuck yourself," Yugi spat viciously, shaking his head sharply at the way her voice trailed off suggestively. She gave him a sympathetic little smile, laughing softly as she tipped her head towards him in amusement. "I hate you."

"That hurts so much," she drawled sarcastically, smiling wider. "But don't worry. I won't take your _precious_ virginity. Maybe Yami will do that while he's killing you. Because I doubt he'll give you the same gift he gave me. Does that hurt you, Yugi? That I have a part of him that you never will?"

Both of them froze suddenly. Anzu's head snapped around and tilted towards the floor, listening, eyes clear yet unfocused all at once. Yugi had a split second temptation to get to his feet and try to run but he was not stupid. He needed to save his energy. Running would only turn her wrath on him more viciously—it was the nature of the wolf. They enjoyed the chase. They enjoyed chasing to kill their prey—movement was the very thing that would get him killed without a second's hesitation. He closed his eyes tightly.

The door in the entrance of the hallway burst open. Yugi flinched at the sound of the wood being split. Anzu burst into giggles in front of him, drawing his eyes open. She was looking at him with unconcealed delight, clasping her hands and getting to her feet immediately. She twirled as if in dance, and smiled at him with false warmth.

"He's early, Yugi. Must be the alpha-beta connection that drew him here so quickly…"

He started to ask but instead turned his eyes on the silhouette in the kitchen. Red eyes were wide and glittering with confusion and rage. Hatred burned around his pupils and his lips had drawn back in a silent snarl, teeth bared.

The room came to him in fragments. Reality split in confusion, the thin glass of familiarity shattered immediately. Yugi's scent was too strong. The smell of iron and calcium burst forth in the air. His heartbeat was slow and steady, wet twists of a powerful muscle in his chest. His lungs were working gently. His pulse was a bit shaky. And he could smell the heat of his skin and the rise of his blood pressure. He could see the way his shoulders rose and fell with each breath.

"Anzu, what the hell are you—?"

"This is what you've always wanted, isn't it, Yami? To consume him and drink his blood and feast on his flesh—to devour the marrow in his bones? Although"—she cast a disappointed sideways glance at the smaller boy on the couch—"you won't get the first taste now…and he probably won't scream like he did when I first attacked him, but I can promise you that he did. And it was one of the most glorious noises I have ever heard," she purred, smiling at him as his eyes slowly dragged away from Yugi to peer at her in distinct confusion.

" _You_ did…this…?" he whispered softly, staring at her blankly.

"Of course, Yami. I came here after I heard you talking to your parents about how Yugi didn't want you as a human. I felt how much pain you were in when you said that he refused to even let you consider it and how scared you were when you said that he might not want to be bitten either. And I've always known how much you want to eat him, Yami. And after what you said to your parents, I knew that you would be too afraid to do it yourself. The idea of the pack scares him and he's afraid of the pain that comes with the Change. You weren't meant to become a human—especially not for someone so _afraid_ of and _disgusted_ by your species. It would be a waste of who you are, Yami."

"Anzu…"

"And if he won't let you bite him, then he has no place with you. You shouldn't have to sacrifice yourself just to be with him. He's ungrateful for what you've already offered him—a lifetime of unquestionable, solid, unmistakable _love_ , of loyalty and friendship, of a partnership that he would never get with another human. He makes you shun your own happiness for him and would reject you for trying to become human!"

Yami blinked slowly and his stomach twisted violently as he swallowed hard.

"So I decided that I would take care of it for you, Yami. He's completely docile and he will be until we either finish him off or he makes his choice." Her face turned from a scornful mourning to excitement, eyes shining as she held out the unfinished glass in her fingers, stretching her arm out. "Here, have a taste, Yami. It's the purest blood you'll ever find."

Yami stared at her as if he were lost, eyes flickering slowly towards Yugi and then eventually back to her. "No," he said softly, though his voice faltered with the insanity of the situation.

"Why _not_?" she demanded, voice growing somewhat shrill with confusion as her eyes hardened in disgust. Her lip curled back and her gaze flashed with hatred. Yugi blinked slowly as he turned his head to the other boy, taking in the lost expression that coated his features. "He was going to reject you anyways, Yami! You couldn't make it last—no matter how hard you tried! Yugi would reject you because he's afraid of everything he doesn't know—because he's a _human_!"

"Anzu, this is not…"

"Right?" she asked slowly, getting up and coming closer. Her arm wrapped around his shoulders and Yami stared at her blankly as he turned his head to take her in. The wine glass was lifted to his nose, sloshing back and forth, but he ignored the scent of it as he stared at her stupidly. "But it is, Yami. He's human. And you're a lycanthrope. You're the child of the alphas and the future leader of our pack. If you actually think that your relationship with him would work, then you're delusional, Yami. And don't you want a taste…? Don't you want to know if it will taste like you've always _dreamed_?"

Yami stared at her and shook his head slowly, disgusted. "You know nothing of my dreams, Anzu," he spat coldly, snarling under his breath and pushing her arm away. "What have you done to Yugi?"

"We were just playing a little game," she scoffed, stepping away and towards the table once more, putting the glass down and twirling around with a flourish that made Yami bristle with hatred. This was his creation. He had given her a second attempt at life. He had done this and brought her back from her deathbed. And now…this was what had come about because of his decisions. "But he is here to help you make a choice."

"A choice?" he demanded, spinning on him and searching his eyes with a cold ferocity that made the other boy's blood freeze. Yugi cringed when he looked upon him, swallowing harshly and shaking his head faintly.

"He's weak and it makes _you_ the same. Your feelings for him are brought on because of your core emotions. You want to fuck him and eat him—the only two things humans are good for. But you're trying to make them something else—something _more_ —and you're going to end up killing yourself that way. You are afraid to even mention the pack or hunting or the Change because you think he's going to judge you. You think that he's going to leave you if you do what you have for the last few years when you were _free_. You should be free to change and eat and kill and hunt and experience everything that you've always _wanted_ to, Yami. That is what a lycanthrope _does_! That is why we were given this gift and the ability to change and experience everything to its fullest. We aren't _meant_ to be dragged down by a human that wants nothing more than to control us!" She shook her head sharply, laughing sardonically as she glanced towards him with eager eyes. "You can't even have _sex_ with him because he's too weak. You have to constantly keep your human face so that he won't leave you because you know that the wolf scares him. You offered to try to live as a human and he _rejected_ and _refused_ you, Yami! He is _nothing_ compared to you and yet you don't see it. He'll _destroy_ you before he ever accepts you."

Yami stared at the other boy who blinked up at him and swallowed hard, the wound on his neck exposed more fully. Anzu must have cut it with a blade or one of her nails, so that the blood was falling downwards in soft rivulets of sharp red.

"You have no idea what you are even talking about, Anzu…"

"But he doesn't have to be like this, Yami. You could make him beautiful and strong like us. You can make him a lycanthrope. You could have everything you wanted together—that lifetime of love and devotion that every wolf craves—and all you would have to do is bite him. All you would have to do is _bite_ him, Yami, let your saliva change his DNA and RNA. And then…next month, he will be exactly like us. He could become what you need…"

"He _is_ what I need!" Yami snarled furiously. "And I would never—"

"You would never change him into a wolf without his consent? But you would let him try to change you into a human when that's not what you are or ever could be?"

"He never asked me to become a human! I offered—"

"He's a human, Yami. Humans are selfish. They push you until you offer something like this and then they turn their backs on you."

"Anzu, he's not like—"

"Don't you _dare_ say that pathetic piece of shit's name!" the she-wolf spat viciously, clenching the cup so tightly that Yugi thought it might break. Yami stiffened momentarily, blinking, and then stared at her again, silent and seeming to regain that lost expression once more.

"But, Yami, if you won't change him, then I guess we will just have to choose the other thing, right, Yugi? Tell him what the second option is, Yugi."

Yugi turned his head, voice soft and low. "She wants you to kill me."

"K-kill you?" Yami sputtered, eyes nearly popping out of his head as his head snapped to stare at Yugi furiously.

"You act as if this is any different from an initiation into the pack," Anzu snapped scornfully, all signs of companionship gone from her eyes as they bore into Yami's. The pupils had grown dilated, her irises darkened with intense hatred, and her voice had grown lower into a snarl of frustration. "You take a human to the pack and they would tell you the same thing."

"But you are not the pack! And you don't get the right to dictate something like this!" the other lycanthrope spat out, narrowing his eyes into slits.

"Why do you continue to pretend, Yami? You've thought about it before. Just like you've always thought about feasting on his bones. Don't be stupid and deny it, Yami."

He heard Yugi's heart skip slightly, glancing at him sideways briefly. He thought vaguely of what it would be like. His bones would crack delicately. His blood would flow in his mouth. It would coat his tongue. It would soak his senses. Yugi would twitch and go through spasms as he tore through flesh and sinew to reach his skeleton… And Yugi was not oblivious at any rate. He too knew what lay in his head at times when he leaned forward a certain way and showed off every knob of his spine. He knew it all. Because Yami had told him. And Yugi had grown to accept it. He had learned to…

"I love you," he mumbled, staring at him. Yugi nodded a little sloppily, obviously tired. The blood loss had not looked too terrible but he could imagine the stress accumulating on top of that would hold an obvious strain over his being.

"Do you even _see_ him, Yami? He has no idea what you really are, what a wolf truly is, what being a lycanthrope _means_! He doesn't experience the same emotions as you or the constant need of approval because you're afraid that he might leave you!"

Yugi blinked at him, startled when Yami's jaw twitched and his eyes momentarily widened. His stomach twisted and his heart ached. Did he really worry about that so much?

"You have spent so much time hiding yourself away from your own nature for him that you do not even recognize it anymore, do you? I know you are a predator. The _pack_ knows. We accept you. We _love_ you. But he can never do that for you. And it will _ruin_ you, Yami. Unless you can do something to save yourself from the pain. Change him so that he can understand. Or devour him as you have always wanted to. It is your decision what you do, Yami, but you will not make me stand by and watch you suffer like this. You and I both know that we could easily be free of it all."

"Whether or not Yugi remains with me after this night, Anzu, he will be alive. And maybe that will be enough," he snapped. Yugi could see, even with the haze that was coming over him, that he was losing his temper. His eyes were growing darker and his jaw was growing clenched, fire erupting into his features to smolder his entire being.

"How disappointing," Anzu scoffed, shaking her head and rolling her eyes as if Yami were an incompetent child. "Very well. I suppose that I shall be the one to do it."

Yami shoved her hard enough that the plaster cracked and caved in where her head collided with it. "You won't touch him."

"Oh, Yami. Think for a moment, won't you? You won't kill your pathetic human boyfriend who wishes to mold you into something you are not, but you would kill your sister? Your own beta, who _you_ created yourself?"

"Anzu—"

"Very well. Then do it." Her eyes flashed with mocking laughter, a smirk crossing her face once more. "I dare you. I am probably stronger than you as it is. But I can hold perfectly still for you. But I think you still wouldn't. You're too much of a coward."

Yami shook his head slowly, snarling low in his throat before lunging forward. She dodged out of the way and the snarl grew guttural. Yugi watched his spine tighten beneath his clothing and his head snap around. His mouth was already twisting and growing longer. His nails were growing darker and thicker, folding inwards and sharpening. His eyes were glowing as he used the couch armrest to throw himself forward.

Anzu burst into laughter, startled into a slight hiccup noise as she moved away again. His leap sent him flying into the wall. Fur burst through his skin, shattering his clothing. The rapid fire of his bones popping viciously beneath his skin set Yugi's body on fire. Tension sprang into his spine and made him tremble briefly. His eyes grew wide as he looked at him. Half human and half wolf, the boy's body had twisted in a way that was too terribly unnatural. The upper half of his body was canine, his eyes sharp and diamond-shaped, blackened drastically. But his lower was still going through the Change even as he sprang forward. His knees cracked and broke, reversing themselves, and his tailbone lengthened. His nails created thick grooves in the surface of the coffee table as he landed on the light wood. His jaws were stretched and slavering, long strings of saliva and foam pooling from each end of his teeth.

Every strand of fur on his body was raised in a bristle, tail upright in the air like a war flag. His head was raised, his jaws chomping shut violently to startle them both. Yugi breathed roughly as the wolf launched himself forward. The table cracked and tore, splintering with the force of his leap. Anzu twisted out of the way and Yugi watched as the last of her Change was pushed forward into completion. She was silver and white, without much of a defining feature sans her eyes and the black of her ears.

Yugi struggled to his feet, taking off for the stairs, and ignored the impact that the two of them made as they slammed into each other. He stumbled on the stairs, nearly throwing himself face first down the steps. The sound of their snarls made his brain rattle in his skull. His stomach twisted and burned as he caught himself on the banister. Not looking back, he made his way down the stairs as quickly as he could. Blood pooled in his mouth as he stumbled and nearly tripped over the edge of the bottom door.

Shakily he pulled himself more fully to his feet and made for the back door. The wolves crashed violently over his head. A piece of furniture was split in half amidst violent snarls. He could hear a yelp and a brief scream but heard their attacker thrown into the wall. He breathed roughly, trying not to think of who was winning, and then hurried for the back porch. He scrambled to unlock the door, momentarily lost as his mind faltered and shattered. His hands were slippery with heated sweat and it burned against the brass of the knob. His fingers shook as he tried to twist it but managed to weakly turn it. The metal rattled and shook in his grip with the pressure of his fingers. He shoved it open awkwardly, fumbling, and his head swam.

He collapsed as his vision grew shattered and strange, unsteady by all means. The door broke from upstairs and a brief scream ripped through the air. The second door was thrown off its hinges a moment later. Yugi struggled to scramble to his feet, using the door to support his weight, and prayed for balance. His legs buckled but did not collapse beneath him. Shaking, he refused to look over his shoulder, managing to throw the door open and scramble out to the small porch.

The sound of clicking nails told him exactly who it was that had come down the stairs. He did not turn around to see the wolf, instead stumbling down the two small steps and nearly collapsing. It came at him in a flash.

Yugi still did not turn to meet it. Instead he stumbled to his feet and listened to the other tearing down the stairs. The sound of their nails and the ferocious snarl that met his ears as the two animals collided was just enough to give him strength to move forward again. But his balance was off and his vision was growing interrupted with splotches of silver and white and clouds of black. He knew of no way to suppress his dizziness. He knew of no way to keep himself from falling over. He had no way of figuring out how to keep himself steady any longer.

His knees buckled and he fell over harshly. Twisting and struggling for some sense of equilibrium, his stomach fell as he looked back. Anzu was balanced on top of the railing like a cat. Every one of her large paws was perfectly balanced on the piece of wood. Against the light from the house, she looked like a large cat with an elongated muzzle and too much body mass. Yami had been thrown aside in a brief second of opportunity. But he was horribly wounded, bleeding from multiple places, with his fur completely caked down. And as Yugi looked at them, it was clear that it was he who was wounded worse.

The silver and white wolf launched herself at him. Self-preservation told him to attempt to run. But his mind had settled into some kind of strange bliss. Calmness enveloped his insides completely. His heart lost its rapid beat. His cold sweat seemed to disappear entirely. His breathing grew calmer. Acceptance swept through him as if in irony.

She collided with him with all of the strength of a bulldozer. He hit the ground with pain he had never known. His head felt as if it had split against the small concrete path. His entire body went slack with pain. And he nearly missed it as her teeth dug into his throat. He could feel the blood on his skin, pooling upwards, but it felt foreign. It was more like experiencing something drip warmly against his neck like heated rainwater. But it seemed disconnected, as if he was somehow seeing another person in his place.

Anzu let out a snarl against his throat that rattled the air. Yugi could see them despite the strain it took on his eyes. The angle was awkward and his eyes burned. But he could see them as his vision was growing darker in the corners. Yami had thrown himself forward despite the numerous wounds and the limp he sported. Every one of his teeth was posed and opened, his jaw stretched to its max. Anzu spun to face him and the scream ripped out before he even attacked.

His aim was precise as it had been with the serow. But it was far more vicious. The intent to kill was clearer than even when he had witnessed him hunt. Anzu saw it as well and trembled briefly. His teeth cut into her throat easily. With the lunge, every bit of power came into his jaws. Yugi listened to the sound of sinew tearing and a bone cracking. Muscles were shredded and he could hear each vein as it was torn. Tendons popped and ripped and a thud pronounced the head that fell to the grass separately from the dull weight of the disconnected body. Blood dripped in rivulets and Yami landed hard with the attack. Falling to his side a step away, Yugi could hear him panting for breath even as his vision started to fade.

He could hear him when he struggled to his feet, whimpering harshly with pain. And he could hear him when he took a few weak steps forward. He heard him nearly fall beside him, his weight disturbing the air horribly. He could feel him when he leaned over and breathed on him. And he felt his pelt brush against his arm as he panted and whined. But he couldn't feel anything past that, his senses failing him as his heart started to stop.

* * *

The predominantly black wolf was lying on its side, so scrawny that each bone in its body was visible. Its coat was ragged, missing clumps in certain areas altogether. Its face had grown sunken, its eyes seemingly too large for their sockets as they opened briefly to stare at him. Heavily malnourished, it could not even get up or raise its head. But the breaths it let out were harsh and came in ragged currents like cynical laughter.

He could hear him in his head now and he flattened his ears at the sound of his voice.

 _And now you mock me as I lay dying_.

 _You're not going to die_ , he stated softly, trotting forward a few steps before pressing himself against the stone on the bank. The water was pretty high, considering how the ice had melted since the end of winter. It wasn't too dangerously far a jump but the water had always been deceptive. He remembered it looking shallow and yet being as deep as to come up to his neck when he tripped on the rocks. Finding a stone upturned and with grooves and somewhat smooth sides that were easy for him to grip with his pads, the other wolf pressed his paws together at the top and bunched his muscles. He pushed with all the strength his body possessed, launching himself like a rocket with the power that rippled in his body.

He landed easily on the other stones directly in front of him, something that would have been easily accomplished if he had only turned and raced back to leap. Wolves could clear up to fifteen feet in a single leap if they were running, a horizontal jump that put most animals to shame. But he had not been eager to take his eyes off of the other. After tracking him for a whole month and rarely finding a trail to follow, it made him reluctant to ever look away.

The other wolf snarled low in its throat, but seemed too tired to keep up with that for more than a few seconds. It trailed away into the warming air and he trotted forward a few steps to stand in front of him. He had long since grown used to the sensation of the dirt shifting beneath his calloused toes, leaving beautiful prints that looked as splendorous as the grandest building set against sunlight. His nails touched the earth, giving a more solid print, and he settled to sit on the ground in front of him. Passing his tongue along his jaws and looking over his shoulder slowly, he could hear a few serows passing through. Hunting would be easy enough. It was the task of making him eat that might be harder.

He returned hours later with the carcass dragged along by its neck, pulled to a rest in front of the other. He had a feeling that it would be too tired to take a bite and so picked at the organs, chewing and half-ingesting them. The smell of blood and marrow roused the other and the malnourished canine struggled to roll onto its stomach, sniffing and peering at him in confusion.

A moment of silence passed between them, the other's expression growing incredibly blank as their eyes burned into each other's. The wind made the leaves rustle and its ears flickered as it raised its head further, sniffing once more. His eyes fell away to stare down at the carcass but an attempt to get to his feet failed and was not repeated. The newcomer lowered his jaws, opening them wide, and heaved until half-digested meat was choked up and rested on the ground in front of him. It was like feeding a puppy, and the thought made him smile want to smile in amusement. The irony of it was not lost on him.

 _Eat up, Yami_. _You're going to need all the strength you can get_.

Yami stared at him for a long minute, unfocused but seeming to draw in each of his features regardless, and then stretched his neck out to lap at the regurgitated meat. The other wolf settled in front of him, lying stretched out beside him, and turned his attention to the rest of his catch.

It took two months of feeding him as if he were a puppy for him to finally be able to get up again and follow him to hunts. Of course Yami was not allowed to do more than watch—as was made clear multiple times by teeth to his skull with just enough force to press his body into a submissive posture—but he still followed and waited. The other was an excellent hunter and usually picked out any serow that was unlucky enough to cross paths with them. He would join him at the kill, his companion taking the first few bites as the alpha between them, and then allow him to eat as much as he could afterwards.

It took another two months for the other to finally allow him to hunt with him. But it was easier for him in the way that they partnered up for the task. The newcomer would chase the goat-antelope straight to him in an ambush fashion. He would wait in a grove of trees near the river and leap out and scare it. He would catch it by the throat while the other caught its hind leg to keep it from thrashing too hard. He would crush the windpipe and the other would allow him to eat to his fill and even made a point of giving him several of the bones with more plentiful amounts of marrow.

 _You know, the last person that stuck around with me got killed_ , he murmured one morning. The river was rippling softly, the air warm and oppressive. His companion was sitting a few feet away, licking at his paws to get rid of some of the water from a small swim minutes before. Dark blue eyes flickered to stare at him before his head slowly turned to study him curiously.

 _Oh yeah_? _What happened to him_?

Yami huffed and settled back on his haunches, turning away briefly to stare at the water. His ears flattened against his skull and a whine crept out of his lungs. _The person that I bit started eating people because the human she fell in love with…rejected her when she showed him what she was_. _She came after him because I was—_ am _—still in love with him and I thought we could work things out_. _We were having a small bit of trouble with it all because the situation wasn't…typical. And she heard me talking to my parents about him and so went after him because I was…upset._ He laughed bitterly, narrowing his eyes and glancing at him sideways. _His name was Yugi. He wound up getting his throat torn out by her when I couldn't find it in me to kill her…_

His companion nodded slightly. _So then she killed him_?

 _I tried to help him. I bit him—I actually tore his wrist open to infect his bone marrow too. It didn't help and someone had already called the police. I had to flee when they started towards the back porch. But his heart had already stopped and he wasn't breathing anymore. Blood loss was probably another contributor…_

 _His heart started back up,_ the other wolf murmured, licking his paws again and sighing before resting his chin on his forelegs. _After they shocked him. And they gave him blood transfusions to make up for the loss. Twelve transfusions because his body rejected them. His cells had already started mutating and couldn't infect the new blood fast enough to keep it from being attacked. They had to keep him for a whole month because he would not be able to even walk properly. When he was let out, the first thing that happened was that he went through the Change. It took a little while but he learned to control it and then he went after you._

 _What the fuck are you talking about_? Yami spat, spinning on him and jumping to his feet once more, every bit of fur along his body rising in a furious bristle. His tail stood straight in the air, his lips curled back viciously, and a string of saliva was beginning to bubble up from his jaws.

The other wolf tilted his head, flicking an ear almost dismissively as it climbed to its feet as well. _Do you really not recognize me, Yami_? His head tipped further and his tail wagged slightly, held parallel with his spine. It was a suspicious and uneasy, defensive posture rather than anything else, signaling that he needed to calm down for a split second.

 _I should have known my mind would splinter this far,_ he mumbled, turning away and dropping his tail immediately in dismissal. _I always did hear of wolves losing their minds when their mates passed or rejected them. Hell, I watched that happen. Anzu was destroyed trying to protect me…and I never got to apologize to Yugi for everything I didn't and couldn't do…_

 _Yes, and you hesitated to kill her because she was a pack member,_ his companion commented softly, watching him with sharp eyes and letting his tail droop as well as his ears flicked every which way. _Your sister, your beta…You wanted to save him, of course you did, but she_ was _your sister, your beta, your pack mate. No matter how much you loved him, you could never just end her life like you needed to before that moment._ He remained silent for a long minute, tail twitching as he flicked his ears and then looked at him more fully, drawing in every hair on his pelt. _I know that, Yami. I realized it while I was in the hospital. I thought perhaps, at first, when I saw what you had done to my arm, where you had broken the bone out of my skin, that you were going to eat me before you got run off by the police. And for a moment I thought that you had never cared about me. But it was the opposite, right, Yami_? _You did not want to eat me, but to heal me, and I remembered what you said about bone marrow. And I knew that you didn't care too little for me but too much about her._

Yami turned and stared at him for a long minute, taking in the soft light gray of his fur. His brows were a soft silver, the stops light brown like the hairs along the top of his muzzle. Light gray and silver made a beautiful loop along the bottom of each eye, swirling outwards to a soft upwards angle that fell downwards and coated the outer tufts of his cheeks. Black blossomed in the center of his forehead in stray hairs, flowing upwards to soft bright brown ears with long silver and white strands curled in the cartilage. Dark brown and gray made several small ringlets of fur along his throat and down towards his chest. His legs were a pure, solid white, with a single splotch of black along his wrist joints. Brown curled into gray and black along his shoulder blade, pronouncing the curve of his bones, with a strange upside down, outwards curl of black that framed the muscle there. His dorsal cape had taken on a bright cinnamon brown-red that shone brilliantly in the sunlight and showed itself beautifully when he moved but hid itself beneath long black guard hairs when he remained still. His saddle was dark gray, with hints of black and small bits of brown and cinnamon, disappearing towards his back legs but curving downwards to outline the curve of his bones. A small layer of gold and tan coated the very back of his hind quarters and the hocks. His tail was colored the shade of a brilliant star, with traces of bright silver and gold, and a tiny touch of tan, with the tip a solid black that stretched upwards in a single line of color to connect with the saddle of color on his back.

His ears fell back against his skull as he looked at him closely, studying his eyes. In another situation, the eye contact, especially so blatant and with such disregard towards hierarchy, would have been seen as a challenge by all means. In that moment, however, the other wolf merely wagged his tail at the realization and focus that was creeping into Yami's eyes. He could see the dark violet now, though at first glance his eyes looked unnaturally uniform dark sapphire blue. Now, however, he saw the sharp spikes of purple color in his irises, rounding the layers of blue around his pupils and outer irises.

A low whine curled upwards in the air, making the other wolf wag his tail more excitedly. Ears pressed flat against his skull and head lowered, Yami sank downwards until his legs were against the earth, unable to support him any longer. His fur bristled and rose and fell in shudders as if he were going through spasms, eyes glittering with confusion and hope that made the other open his jaws in something akin a beautiful smile. A soft pink tongue curled over his incisors, a sign of pure adoration as his tail became a furiously waving flag in the wind.

 _Y-you…y-you're alive_ …

Yugi nodded and stretched his neck out to run his tongue over his forehead and between his ears, momentarily looking over his dark fur. For a second Yami thought he was tempted to bathe him, though the river was right there and he could leap in it at any time. But he pulled back after a moment, plopping down in front of him, tail still wagging some. _And the best part is that I'm not ridiculously insane—mostly because you're alive and I finally found you, but still…_

Yami nodded in a jerky motion that said he was still in shock that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him and his mind wasn't torturing him. He blinked wide red eyes up at him again slowly, searching his gaze. He swallowed harshly, flanks shaking as his pelt rolled over his body with twitchy jerks of satisfaction and wonder, of fear and confusion. He was so beautiful—almost as stunning as he had when Yami had first laid eyes on him. Yami trembled again and scooted a little closer, sniffing to see if his scent had changed in any way.

Yugi wagged his tail in invitation and leaned forward to allow him to brush his nose against his cheek. The scent was as familiar as it always had been. He smelled of life itself—wind and earth and summer, the sun and moon, with a touch of fire and ice. There was the lace of cinnamon and chocolate. There was the touch of honeysuckle and leaves stirring in the wind. And then that one special thing that he had no name for beyond it being _Yugi_. It throbbed with a nighttime rhythm, and it dazzled his senses like fire burning before his eyes. It was as clear as courage, and it flowed like a river with the strength of burning flames and the crackle of lightning splitting a dark sky. It was moonlight and stars and the vastness of the galaxies overhead and the power to place hope and beautifully strong will into a single task. It was as sweet as freedom, and as satisfying as home.

The other lycanthrope got to his feet for a moment, walking forward a step, and then tossed himself sideways to roll onto him. Yami growled softly in amusement as he twisted faintly and opened his jaws, his tongue falling against the roof of his mouth as he panted playfully and wagged his tail once more.

He pressed his nose into his shoulder, breathing in deeply, and nipped at his flank lightly, Yugi retaliating with a soft bite. For a moment they looked at each other, Yami still somewhat disoriented with the reality of the situation. And then he wagged his tail happily and ran his tongue along the curve of his flank. He wasn't sure how Yugi had found him—whether it was by scent or using the connection that came between a bitten human and the werewolf that had done so—but either way he was glad he had. Despite the incident that had happened before, looking straight into those familiar blue-violet orbs, he thought that perhaps they would be able to make it past everything that had already happened. They could stay together and face whatever it was that rested ahead of them.

 **Tell me what you think? These wolves are a test run for my future multi-chap fic later. So reviews are DEFINITELY very much appreciated.**

 **Happy Halloween guys~**

 **A few quick notes for anyone who was wondering:**

 **Anzu didn't hold still because of survival instincts (they're extremely strong in werewolves regardless of species) and so dodged instead of doing as she said she would and staying completely still. That's the only reason—otherwise, if she wasn't going to be killed, she would have done as she had said and stayed completely still for him when he attacked.**

 **When Yami allows Yugi to feed him like a pup, it's because he's hopeful and because of his survival instincts. He also thinks that his mind splintered completely and he is unable to tell what's actually real besides basic concepts such as hunger. That's why he says to Yugi that his mind had splintered so much that he was hallucinating when he and Yugi were speaking.**

 **The alpha-beta connection that Anzu mentions when she's talking to Yugi is not a rank in the hierarchy. Yami is the alphas' son but he is NOT the beta because it is not necessary for him to be as of that moment seeing as, as he said, the pack was extremely well balanced as it was. So he had no reason to be the beta yet—and he was too young for that role anyways. And since he left the pack in mourning over Yugi, he wouldn't get that spot even if they went back to join them again. The alpha-beta connection is a (complicated) bond between a lycanthrope that bites a human and gives them the trait and the human that receives it. The alpha is the one that bites, the beta the one that is bitten. It's nothing to do with rank aside from the two people involved in the event of being bitten. There wasn't room to include an explanation for it in here considering the length, but it'll be explained far more in the multi-chapter werewolf story. (Note: The lycanthropes cannot usually speak mentally as well as Yugi and Yami do in the story—it's only for this one-shot, however, not for every pack of lycanthropes.)**

 **Also, normally a werewolf (of either species) would not be drawn to their potential mate's marrow or blood or anything of that kind of thing (and most certainly would not want to kill them or let anything happen to them). But, as Yami said, he hadn't been changing often since he decided to date Yugi and a stable lycanthrope is one that changes often and experiences the freedom of their wolf nature. So Yami turned somewhat unstable because he suppressed the need to Change so often and his body needed it (the Change, for lycanthropes, is actually extremely healthy so they change as often as they can and so refusing to do so makes them more predator-like even while in their human forms).**

 **The bond between pack mates is one of the strongest that exist for werewolves (of both species, but mostly lycanthropes) and so Yami couldn't just kill Anzu for what she did to Yugi because a wolf is an extremely loyal creature and so would not want to turn on a family member.**

 **If anyone is interested in more about werewolves or Thiess of Kaltenbrun, then PM me and I'll give you a few links.**

 **I'll be posting another one-shot later today, to play with the lycanthropes' sister species, the hellhounds. So if you wanted to know more about the hellhounds then that will be your chance to do so.**

 **On an entirely DIFFERENT note: If anyone is wondering about _The Distraction_ and _Simple's_ sequel, I haven't been able to get into the mood to write much of _The Distraction_ despite numerous attempts at it. _Simple's_ sequel is about four chapters in but I'm NOT about to start posting it until I actually finish it (which is technically my rule for any story although _Umbral Oath_ managed to get past me with that and see how well that turned out with updates? :P). So, I'm still working on _The Distraction's_ next update but it's going to be a while, so bear with me. And I'm working on _Simple's_ sequel, but again, it's going to be a while, so yeah, don't worry. I'm almost finished with edits and rewriting the last chapter of _The Jackal and the Dragon_ but I can't do much research for it at the moment so I'm kind of forced to hold off for the time being. And I will be TRYING to update _Umbral Oath_ again soon enough (but of course it wants to fight me a lot so I have no actual date in mind for when it's next chapter will come out). So, rest assured, I haven't forgotten ANY of my stories.**


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